Kung Fu Tigress: Scarlet Jade
by Graystripe64
Summary: Due to sudden haunting images and distant memories that push Tigress to her edge, she is forced on a journey to discover her origins. Meanwhile, a dark figure begins to arise and his involvement in Tigress' past complicates her adventure even more.
1. Prologue: Self Examination

Love. Not usually a word used to describe or define me. But actually, one would find it surprising, myself included, that 'love' has made me into the stoic, iron-jawed warrior I am today. Or maybe, a 'lack of love' is a more accurate idea.

I have felt the tension of intense training sessions, the swell of my heart after a victory, apprehension in the fear of making a mistake, the excruciating pain of pushing myself harder, the chill of disappointment, and the bitter taste of defeat. I have lived a life that others can only imagine—one where they assume every emotion has been addressed. All except one, that is…

I have yet to feel the taboo sensation of love.

To be truly loved.

This sentiment I have been lacking has given me a clear description of _what_ I am, but never _who_ I am. It is easy for me to say that I am a Kung Fu Master, a warrior, a tiger…

But _who_ I am? A whole lifetime of contemplating has not gotten me any closer to the truth. I could clearly say that, "I am Master Tigress, leader of the Furious Five", but doesn't that just bring me back to the already answered question of _what_ I am? Or even simpler, "I am Tigress". But even _that_ is not a worthy response. Have I been_ Tigress_ my entire life? Did I ever have another name –one perhaps given by parents?

I have been able to suppress these thoughts for long periods of time—to the point where I no longer even acknowledge their existence. But not being able to know who you truly are…isn't that the core basis of Kung Fu? I learned this from Po, believe it or not. That silly panda revealed more to me in that one conversation in Gongmen City than I to myself in over twenty years. Po had been struggling with the same concept that I had been for almost my entire life. He got a taste of it, while I had been practically drowning in it. His questions were even the same: _Who am I? Where did I come from? What happened to my family?_

_That _was why I hugged him—let my guard down, indulged my compassionate side. Despite our obvious differences, he and I were the same in that short moment. Someone understood my pain. Who would have thought that, that go-lucky, noodle-loving panda could have reached down into the depths of my heart and held out the missing pieces for me to see?

I hide my grief well. No one other than myself knows how often I would spend my time wondering and dreaming who my parents were when I was a cub living at he Bao Gu Orphanage, while at the same time, trying to live down the cruel title of "monster" at just my sensitive, seven year-old self. Few also know just how hard I used to fight and strive for my master's approval in my later years, only to be brushed aside like a mere piece of furniture and knowing that my all was not enough.

To let people know just how at war I used to be, and still am with myself would make me appear vulnerable and weak. I have been too badly scarred by strangers to allow them to get any closer to the core of my being.

And therefore, I have hardened myself: hardly letting anything in or out. Of course, that does not mean I have forgotten what love looks like.

I have trained myself to turn a blind eye to the open, daily displays of parental affection. I pretend not to see how children are hugged and kissed by their mothers, and praised by their proud fathers. I hardly ever see it now, but there are those rare moments when I catch myself staring in awe, eyes wide and mouth agape, and ask: how can I truly ignore what I have never felt, never experienced?

I am much less affected by this now than when I was a cub. Shifu would often ask me why I would keep my head lowered, eyes directed only on the road ahead of me when he and I would leisurely walk amongst the Valley citizens on days off. To me, telling him the truth –that I was doing it to protect myself from heartbreak— would only make him more frustrated with me. I wanted to stay strong; even if that meant fighting furiously the urge to cry. So I stayed silent. I have_ remained_ silent.

But I have constantly been told that I am too hard on myself. Does that same idea apply here? Do I owe myself a little solace—a little relief?

Can my questions be answered? My wonderings confronted? My deepest desires granted?

The key to all these locked secrets can be none other than what I've lived without my entire life:

Love.


	2. Sinister Introduction

_In ancient Chinese mythology, tigers were seen as guardians and protectors of the weak. Their 'god-like' strength gave them this title and that honor has followed them since then. _

_Some believe that this honor manifested into the Wei_ _Zu* territory, where a special, highly skilled, tribe of noble tigers were granted, by the gods themselves, the opportunity to utilize their unmatched power by protecting the villagers of that land. _

_The leading, noble family of the clan was respected, praised, and admired for their services to the people under Wei Zu; hoping that their contributions would last to the end of all dynasties._

…_But this was not meant to be, however. _

_Over twenty-five years ago, Wei Zu was destroyed from the corruption of its own members and the noble family was overthrown. Some villagers gossiped it was a 'mutiny' on the family, but they knew very little. A long, honorable, family line of guardians; suddenly put to a brutal halt. Since then, the title of the beloved tigers has been lost to legend…_

_But from out of the rubble of their downfall, something new has been brooding under the surface, with a new face leading it. Like a sleeping volcano, a reformed tribe of tigers from the days of old wait for the right moment to make their presence known to the world again, to reclaim their honored position, and with the help of their new leadership, all of that can be achieved…and maybe a little bit more._

* * *

><p>Green eyes watched intently from the shaded darkness of the training arena –everything hidden in shadows except for the few lit torches supported on the encompassing walls.<p>

"Watch your form!" yelled a burly male tiger, standing in the middle of the arena, keeping a close eye on all of his trainees practicing their kung fu skills.

He looked like he was in his mid fifties: gray fur beginning to sprout out from his ears and his sickly, yellow eyes had formed a dullness to them – no longer shiny and sleek as they had been in his younger years. His paws were thick and scarred and normally took great offense when he caught someone staring at them. His clothes were simple: a pair of brown silk pants that were patched at the knees, a studded, leather waist wrap, and a very thin shirt that hung low, revealing some of his white chest fur. This aged tiger was a short-tempered perfectionist and drilled his students in harsh sequences and techniques.

Flashes of orange and black fur streaked all around said instructor and made fierce contacting blows with the other moving forms. Training dummies and other equipment were shredded, torn, and completely broken in the most brutal of ways. Power, agility, and deathly strikes accompanied with cries as the younger tigers showed no mercy to each other in their training; claws extended.

The same commanding voice shouted again, "Alignment, it's all about ali-!"

_Slice!_

A flicker of claws and a fresh cut appeared on a young male's face, to which he growled fiercely at and placed his paws over. Blood oozed from the wound, coloring his paws a wet and shiny red. His sudden reaction had stopped his fight with another male, who looked at his fallen opponent with rage.

"Get up, Bai! Don't be weak!" shouted the challenging male over the injured Bai*. When Bai just hissed at him with threatening eyes and bared fangs, still covering his painful wound, the young warrior raised his paw above his head, extended his claws once again, and was about to strike when a second hand caught his and firmly stopped him in the attempt to complete his victory.

The instructor gripped this student's paw in what felt like a metal vice. "You dare strike down a warrior when you have already won?" He squeezed tighter, causing the younger tiger to roar in pain. The trainer prepared to break the student's wrist with one defiant twist of his own.

"You pathetic –"

"_Stop!"_

Attention immediately turned to the shadows of the training arena as a dark figure stepped forth from them; green eyes still shining brightly despite the change of light environment. It was another large, male tiger with a grave expression on his face. He was wearing an expensive attire: a hand woven, green silk robe (which his paws were tucked into but looked as though a sinister arsenal of weapons lay tucked away beneath them) adorned with embroidered symbols and characters of nobility. The trainer noticed the shining, jeweled pendant clasped/pinned onto the front of his robe. It contained the image of a fantastic tiger circulating around the characters: 衞 族 _(Wei Zu)_. The tiger trainer himself wore one as well on his shirt; they all did, but the one he was looking at was far richer. It was made of fine metals and precious green jade that shone as the mysterious tiger stepped further into the fading light. Underneath he wore the pants and ankle wraps of a Kung Fu warrior. He did not bother to hide how much wealth it took to afford such garments.

"General Leng*!" the stunned master said, making it clear that he had not noticed his presence in the arena until now.

His stride was slow but intimidating, not hesitating to insert himself into the argument between the two restless warriors. He stopped just in front of the trainer, cocking his head back and sneering slightly, not once diverting his green gaze from the older tiger master. Both the master and the young student noticed a long, flesh-colored scar trailing down the left side of the General's face: starting at the top of his brow and ending in the middle of his cheek. They tried not to stare at it, fearful that it would increase the already heavy tension in the air.

Leng's attention flicked towards the writhing Bai on the floor, still trying to stop the bleeding emanating from his face. General Leng then looked back to the paw of the master firmly gripped on the younger, insolent one, whose fear was eminent in his face due to the situation.

A moment more of silence and the noble tiger spoke, "Master Dao Xi*," he addressed the frustrated elder, "Release young…what is your name?"

"Jiao*," replied the stubborn male in a very uncertain tone, not daring to make eye contact with the noble General.

"Release Jiao, here."

Master Dao Xi snorted disbelievingly at his superior's order, thinking it must have been a test of his confidence in his authority. But a quick glance at the smoldering wrath hidden behind those emerald eyes told him otherwise.

"But General!" he challenged, tail swishing agitatedly, "This arrogant '_cub'_ almost killed his comrade! He—"

_Shing! _A large claw suddenly appeared under Dao Xi's chin. The Master's head instinctively titled upwards as Jiao watched in silent terror at the display, noting to himself that it was the largest, most lethal-looking claw he had ever seen. Both of them held their breaths.

General Leng spoke in an unfaltering whisper, "Release him."

Trying to ignore the gory the fact that once twitch of movement from his commander would have resulted him in a defective throat, Dao Xi released Jiao and the young tiger immediately gripped his paw, hardly aware of the pain anymore.

"Retrieve that ax there on your right," ordered the General, signaling to both Jiao and the ax he knew he would find, not bothering to even look at the direction. He still kept a claw held dangerously under the master's chin, eyeing him with an unusual glare. Dao Xi doing his best to firmly maintain eye contact as well.

The suddenly _not-so-arrogant_ Jiao returned instantly with the ax his General had summoned for. He grunted obediently, "Sir!"

It was then that General Leng slowly sheathed his frightening claw again, still keeping, however, his threatening stare with Master Dao Xi. After a moment, he suddenly turned to the ax-wielding student, capturing his full attention with the fierceness of his green gaze and stated simply:

"Finish what you started."

Young Jiao's eyes widened at the command, looking over at Bai who he had almost forgotten about completely. He was now on his hands and knees, keeping a red drenched paw on the side of his face and wincing in sheer pain.

"Master Dao Xi, follow me," General Leng ordered as he made for the exit to the training arena hidden in the shadows. The way he carried himself made it out to seem as though nothing serious had happened – back straight, head held at a perfect ninety-degree angle, tail held erectly with a curl, and paws tucked back under his green robe.

Dao Xi gave one last glance at both Jiao and Bai, a flash of sympathy crossing his usually unexpressive eyes, before moving quickly to catch up his General. Leaving the arena and walking into the uncertainty of the shadows, he could hear Jiao lift the ax high above him, Bai scooting himself towards his comrade and the following muffled conversation:

"Jiao, you—"

"I…I have to. You saw what he did to Master, didn't you? He'll do the same to me, or worse!"

"But you're not like this, Jiao! You're not a coward!"

Silence, then in a growl, "You're right, I'm not."

The ax came swinging down at full force.

_Slice! Crack!_

* * *

><p>Head down and eyes averted from the swift-moving tiger ahead of him, Master Dao Xi followed General Leng up a few flights of stairs. He knew where they were going. The entire palace always seemed immersed in darkness. Knowing the time of day no longer applied, because natural light hardly ever made its way past their stonewalls. Maybe it was because they lived most of their existence under ground.<p>

The Wei Zu Palace had been renovated in the last fifteen years, adding to it several underground passages, hallways, rooms, and numerous training halls and arenas. There was practically a whole new palace underneath the extravagant one above them. When General Leng had appointed himself into power, he demanded that everyone remain submerged; never to return to the surface until he claimed the time was right. To him, making their existence a secret was a crucial factor to their plan. He enforced this law with fear for heavy punishments to anyone who refused.

They passed a couple of fellow tiger guards dressed in heavy battle armor, who grunted a salute to General Leng and then to Master Dao Xi. Each received a nod from their superiors and went on with their route, keeping every inhabitant in check.

Turning down another hallway and then making a direct left to a large, lavishly designed, cast iron door, Master Dao Xi knew that they both had arrived at General Leng's Study. The door had on it the same ornate design as the image on the pendant sported by all the inhabitants of the Wei Zu Palace. It was their national seal. Leng entered promptly into his own study with Dao Xi pacing after him. He had only been in this study one other time as a young man when his father had helped construct it. It was now adorned with shelves and shelves of books and scrolls, each pertaining to something the master could only guess about. A large drafting table lay in the middle of the room, which Dao Xi noticed was covered in maps, strategy notes, and many scrolls left unfurled.

But General Leng stopped before either of them could reach it completely and turned on his heels to face his subordinate.

"Master Dao Xi, do you know why I stopped you this night?"

The old tiger's brows furrowed. "You mean with that student in the training arena?"

General Leng blinked.

Dao Xi thought for a moment, unsure of how to respond, for he knew the wrong answer could be dire. Instead, he said, "Not exactly, Sir."

"You were right when you said that, that young Jiao would have killed his opponent," mused Leng as he turned around and paced forward towards his drafting table, placing a large, orange paw on it but not picking up anything. Dao Xi stayed stiffly where he was. "And that was exactly what I had expected of the boy. Had you not interrupted, I would have looked forward to seeing how he would have succeeded."

Master Dao Xi's face couldn't help but contort in horror. He was well versed in the teachings of Kung Fu and new the specific conduct of how to win in a fight with honor. He knew for certain that killing your opponent was never allowed, except when absolutely necessary.

"Excuse my outburst, General, but you would consider _killing_ a vulnerable comrade in training a victory?"

"Certainly," answered General Leng, turning to the master with a wide-eyed expression as if shocked by Dao Xi's reaction. "For those who are able to do it, of course. Regrettably, I hardly see any of your other students harboring such an ability."

Master Dao Xi puffed out his chest and lowered his brows even closer to his nose. "Why does one need such a brutal capacity?" he growled. He would have said more in the same tone, but stopped when he noticed the General inspecting his talon-like claws with interest. He had been to close to those claws to be asking for more from them in the same day.

"I am ashamed that you, after all these years as one of my most trusted trainers, still does not understand my reasons," he said calmly at first. Then his voice rose, "Doesn't understand what I intend to accomplish! To build a better empire than that of my brother!"

Dao Xi hung his head low and tightened his fists in remembrance of twenty-five years ago. "I understand, Sir."

A frightening roar and then…

_Wham!_

Dao Xi was suddenly lifted and pinned against the door they had entered through – the hard metal of the engravings digging into the back of his head, the tightness of General Leng's clawed paw clenched around his throat, and his desperate attempts to get air into his lungs. A couple of scrolls were jostled from their resting places in the shelves and fell to the floor.

He was forced to look into the face of General Leng: ears folded back and ivory teeth bared. But the most horrifying was having to stare into the smoldering, rage full, jade eyes of his while trying not to stare at the hideous pink scar that almost split his face into two, uneven halves.

"If this were true, then my army would not be as weak and pathetic as they are—_you_ wouldn't be, either!" he hissed, spitting venom onto Master Dao Xi's orange face.

"I have waited and brooded over thirty years for this moment and I will not be held back by the defectiveness of _your_ students! I need a strong, lethal, cunning army that isn't afraid to kill those who get in the way!" He paused, a devious smirk spreading across his lips and whiskers twitching. "Much like myself."

With a massive thud, Master Dao Xi was thrown onto the floor, panting and staring daggers at his respected General. He had been humiliated. It was the unpredictable authority that General Leng had that kept Dao Xi from attacking him; from defending himself. Although he was larger and taller than his General, brute force could easily be used against him. Leng's mind was vast, conniving, and manipulative. There were few who could ever overcome the effect of General Leng's mind games.

"There is always room for improvement, however, Master Dao Xi, and I expect to see some," uttered the proud tiger with his back turned to the fallen master and paws folded neatly behind him. "I trust you to keep in mind that our day of glory is upon us. Within two months our glorious plan will be put into action and I anticipate victory." He then paused, thinking.

"Your students should be prepared enough by then, but for cautionary measures, I will send out our sub-division on a mission."

"The wolverines…Sir?" Dao Xi hesitated at the last part, a grudge forming in his heart towards the noble tiger.

"Indeed. They will be able to recruit more of our kind in the far lands—more of our wondrous, glorious kind, and partake in our triumph!" he spoke with a sick prideful ness in his tone. He turned around instantly, a harsh, animalistic gleam in his cat eyes. "Go! Prepare my soldiers! Time is a luxury we are running low on!"

Master Dao Xi stood to his feet slowly, clenching his rippling muscles. He gave a reluctant bow. "Yes, General." He turned to leave, reaching for the iron door and wrenching it open with almost no effort.

"Oh, and Master Dao Xi," General Leng called back with a hint of crafty pleasure. "Do not attempt to defy my orders in your training. I will be keeping a close eye on your progress…"

* * *

><p>Wei Zu = <em>"to defend; protect", "clan"<em>

Leng_ = "cold"_

Dao Xi_ = "to grunt; grumble"_

Jiao_ = "arrogant"_

Bai_ = "to be defeated; beaten"_


	3. Responsibilities

The sun shone brightly into Tigress' eyes, making them glow an even more vibrant orange hue. She had to wince slightly in order to make out the figure she was supposed to be looking for. And then, she spotted it! There it was, on the highest limb of the massive tree she was scaling, out of several others in a small forest, near a tiny village on the outskirts of the Valley of Peace. Her vision darted downwards for half a second to find that she was about 30 feet off the ground and still had a ways to go!

"Do you see her? I think she may be at the top!" echoed a frantic voice from below. Tigress recognized it as the worried mother rabbit she had agreed to assist moments ago.

"Not to worry!" the female tiger called. She began nimbly jumping higher and higher up the immense tree, grabbing onto new branches with swift, easy movements that took almost no effort for a warrior of her skill. "I see her! She'll be down soon!"

With that last word uttered, Tigress had already ascended another 30 feet; her arms loosely gripped a branch in front of her while her feet where perched on another below. She came face to face with her target: a pitiful image of a small girl bunny huddling against the trunk of the tree and shaking from fear. It was hard to see the girl's face, as it was nestled between her arms, and she didn't even bother to notice the large feline in front of her.

"_How she managed to get all the way up here – I don't know,"_ Tigress thought to herself with a smirk. "Hello there, little one," she cooed in the voice she saved only for children.

The little rabbit bravely removed her head from the safety of her arms and glanced with big, nervous eyes at the tiger, mumbling, "Mmm…H-Hello." She was still shaking pretty hard and Tigress noticed.

"Hey, it's all right. I'm here to help you down," she said gently with a smile. "You _do_ want to come down, don't you?"

The girl (who was probably no older than 5) nodded fervently, although the rest of her seemed to calm down quite a bit and that assured the warrior.

Tigress laughed and continued to smile, "I was hoping you'd agree. And I think your mother feels the same." She then held out her paws to the child so that she could be helped further. "Here we go then."

The little rabbit just stared alarmed at Tigress' paws, gasping at sight of them and retreating back to the security of the tree trunk and hugging it tighter.

Tigress was startled by the bunny's reaction and grew slightly self-conscious of her own paws; looking at them as if there was something wrong with them that she hadn't noticed before. She honestly hadn't expected such a response. Then she realized that, to the child, they must have looked absolutely massive. Her ears flattened to her head in embarrassment while her expression turned apologetic.

"I know they can _look_ kind of big and maybe a bit scary, but they're actually a lot less dangerous than you would think." Her ears raised themselves again when she noticed the girl brighten moderately and make a move closer to her. But still, the feline added, "And, well, in my humble opinion, they're pretty soft too."

At that, the girl certainly grew more interested; a smile creeping on her muzzle, and gently reached out a curious, little paw to Tigress'. She found that what the female tiger said was indeed true! Tigress then had the reassurance to scoop up the bunny and pull her gently away from the trunk and then chuckled again as the rabbit shyly began running her little fingers through the soft, white fur on her arms.

"A lot better than that prickly, old tree trunk, huh?" Her question was answered with a spirited nod and a small grin.

"All right, now hang on tightly," warned the large feline as she propped the bunny on her muscular shoulders. The girl suddenly grasped the ends of the tiger's whiskers in order to keep herself steady. Tigress, however, didn't take as much comfort in the idea as the child did and corrected kindly with a clearing of her throat.

"How about instead you hold onto my ears until we get down?" Obliging, the bunny and moved her paws to the fuzzy triangles at the top of Tigress' head.

They both looked down at the vast labyrinth of tree bark, leaves, and branches. "Ready?"

The girl gulped. "Hmmm, mmm…"

Then, without another word or gesture, Tigress jumped effortlessly down into the confusing tangle of tree mass – using her claws to scale down the trunk and then swinging to reach lower limbs and grappling onto those with firm paws – all while keeping her long tail erect for balance and pupils dilated to let in maximum light.

She landed with expert dexterity onto the ground on her fours and then rose to her two. Her friends – the other members of the Furious Five: Monkey, Viper, Crane, and Mantis, and the Dragon Warrior: Po – were off to the side staring at her with impressed smiles. Po looked as though he could hardly contain himself from saying, _"Awesome!"_

Tigress smiled back at them as she brushed off a few excess leaves from her shoulders and then reached to the top of her head where she found the bunny child, looking as though she'd seen a ghost and gripping herself closely to the uppermost part of the tiger. She was shaking slightly in fright of the process to which she had been brought down from the tree; her paws still clinging desperately to the tiger's little ears for support. Tigress had to pry the bunny from her, and when she succeeded, held her upright in her paws, chuckling, "Sorry about that."

As if on cue, the little rabbit's mother came rushing towards the stripped warrior with her arms outstretched and screaming, "Oh, my goodness! My baby!"

Tigress knelt down onto one knee and set the child on the ground, watching pleasantly as the mother and her daughter embraced each other in a warm hug. The other 5 warriors formed themselves closer to Tigress and looked on with equal satisfaction.

"Mommy!" the girl cried while being swung and cuddled all at once.

"Oh, you had me so worried! I thought I told you not to climb such big trees! How in the world did you get up that high?"

The girl released the hug to look her mother in the eyes and said truthfully, "Well I started out really low; right at the bottom, but when I started going up and up, I was afraid to come down! I kept going and I got too high!"

It certainly wasn't the greatest explanation. The mother looked sternly at her daughter and sighed. "Don't you ever do something like that again, you hear me?"

"Yes, Mama," came the sullen reply.

Another sigh and the bigger rabbit embraced the smaller one again, nuzzling her. "I'm just so glad you're safe…I don't know what I'd do if I lost you…"

It was with that loving whisper that Tigress' golden, orange eyes grew wider, as if she had been hit in the chest with something invisible. Her gut twisted uncomfortably. The wind felt like it had been knocked out of her; yet she continued to look on. Turning away from the sight surely would have ceased the nagging feeling in the back of her mind, but she did no such thing. Something forced the female tiger to look on at the beautiful scene ahead of her: a mother was lovingly cuddling her daughter.

It was so foreign to her, yet at the same time so fascinating. It was a puzzle and she wanted desperately to understand it.

She had barely sensed her jaw drop slightly, and only fully noticed it when Viper locked it back into place with her tail. That woke her up from her trance, eyes blinking awake. She turned to Viper slightly with her unchanged expression. Viper's, however, was sympathetic, accompanied with a reassuring smile, as if she understood.

"Oh, thank you! Thank you so much for helping me and my Lin!" said the mother rabbit, as she stood right in front of the feline warrior, still holding her daughter. She was no taller than her knee (not counting the ears, of course). "You truly _are_ as noble as they say! You have my gratitude, Master Tigress!"

Tigress hadn't noticed her coming towards her, but grinned happily at her as if she had. "You're quite welcome, but please, it is my pleasure to have been of help to you," she remarked as she stood to her full height, towering over the small Valley citizen. She looked up to notice that a couple other citizens - a few geese and pigs – who had probably sensed the commotion and gathered around the rabbit mother, beaming with respect and admiration at the warriors.

"Oh, so modest! But please _do_ know how grateful I am - all of you!" she signaled to the other masters standing behind the tiger, to which they all bowed in response. The small crowd of citizens bowed as well, giving the Kung Fu masters their final praises at the last minute. Waving their goodbyes, the villagers departed to their little houses and the 6 warriors went on their separate way back to the Jade Palace, a ways off into the distance.

* * *

><p>"Whew! Man, guys, it's been one busy day!" Po interjected once they had walked a considerable distance from the small village they were last at. "What have we done – we've saved at least a dozen citizens from robbers, kicked the butts of a whole gang of boar bandits, rescued a family of pigs from a burning building, helped <em>rebuild <em>that building, and got that little girl out of a tree just then!"

Monkey was counting of his fingers and nodded. Mantis on his shoulder responded for him, "Yep, I think that's everything, big guy!"

Crane took off his rain hat and wiped his feathered forehead with the same foot. "Who would have thought today was 'Let's Wear Out the Furious Five and the Dragon Warrior Until They Crack – Day'?"

"Oh, don't sound so ungrateful, it's nice to help those in need!" Viper retorted, slithering by Tigress' feet. She looked up brightly at the large feline. "Right, Tigress?"

Tigress looked down at the green snake and smirked. "Of course."

"Yeah, especially when you get a 'thank you' like that one!" Po added, pointing a thumb behind him in reference to the two rabbits they helped.

Viper nodded and glanced back at the tiger next to her. "Oh, Tigress, you did such a wonderful deed back there! That mother was absolutely in awe of you!"

"_In awe of her?_ She was practically willing to become her servant!" Mantis hollered.

"Well when it comes to a parent and their child, you can never be too thankful!"

Crane was next to stick his head in the conversation. "Yeah, I was surprised by just how quickly you volunteered to take on the task, Tigress! I mean, I could have easily flown to the top to have gotten that little girl, or Monkey actually, whose probably the most acrobatic out of us all!"

Tigress' eyebrows furrowed and her stance grew defensive. "Are you saying I was not well enough qualified?"

Crane immediately wished he hadn't said anything and began backtracking helplessly. "Oh – No, that's not what I meant at all! I was just –"

The snake came to the bird's aid and interrupted gracefully, "What he meant was he hadn't realized what a big _kitten_ you become around kids!"

That arose a few stifled laughs out of all the masters. Viper slithered ahead with a playful grin, knowing full well that she was probably the only one who could say something like that to Tigress and escape unscathed. Said feline, of course, just lowered her brows further and glared at all her teammates to stop their snickering. Bitter discomfort was clearly etched on her face.

"Although I resent that, I _do_ like to help children when I can," she stated simply, dropping onto all fours and preparing to sprint ahead. "Now can we please get back to the Jade Palace? It's getting dark."

The Dragon Warrior turned his head to the setting sun behind him and beamed brightly. "Oh, sweet! That means supper time!" He then gathered himself and attempted to catch up to the tiger and snake. Crane was up in the air with a few flaps of his wings; Monkey and Mantis were the last to pick up the pace.

"If it's not Kung Fu with you, Po, it's food!" called the bug as he hopped from his friend's shoulder and ran at his own lightening-fast stride.

* * *

><p>Viper was slithering at the same pace as Tigress – they were side by side. The reptile momentarily turned to look behind and above her to find that Po, Crane, and the others were out of earshot and trailing a considerable distance behind them both. She cocked her head upwards towards the running feline beside her, noticing that her expression was stern and focused – like always.<p>

She thought for a moment, retaining the intense silence before ultimately breaking it by saying, "Are you feeling better?"

Tigress caught Viper's question as her ear swiveled downwards to pick it up. She said nothing for a while: thinking of how to respond. "I don't know what you mean," she answered with an emotionless tone.

"You _know_ what I mean…"

Tigress looked down at Viper, still keeping up her strong, almost unmatchable stamina, before bringing her gaze back up again onto the path ahead.

"At the village, when you were staring frozen at that mother and her kid! I saw you, Tigress. You know I did." She paused to catch her breath. "I know that kind of thing hardly ever happens anymore, but when it does, I can't help but worry for you –"

"It should_ never _happen!" Tigress hissed through her fangs, still focused on the road.

Viper hissed back: "I know you feel that way, but it still does!"

Suddenly, the snake stopped her fast-paced slithering and came to a fierce standstill. She just stared seriously at her friend, who in turn instantly grew aware of her fellow female warrior's absence from her side, and skidded to a halt on her paws. The stripped warrior walked towards her with fists clenched and a burning fire in her scarlet eyes.

"And _I still_ worry for you!"

Tigress' narrowed irises didn't perturb the snake one bit.

"Viper, what are you doing? We can't stop and talk here! They'll catch up and – "

"You're sensitive to very few other things, Tigress! I want to know that you're okay!" she hissed, unsheathing her fangs threateningly. "As your sister, I need to know!"

Tigress grew agitated at the thought of the male warriors hearing them, the pestering questions they would ask as to what the two women were chatting about, and the faulty, less-than-the-truth explanation that would follow. But the tiger composed herself, regardless. Viper was right – she did deserve some sort of reassurance. She was just trying to be helpful…

Sighing, and keeping her gaze averted downwards, Tigress knelt down to the snake's height, right arm resting on her raised knee. Only then did she reveal her glowing eyes. "Listen, everything's fine. It's over and I'm all right. I'm sorry to have worried you. Honestly."

The sternness in Viper's face slowly disappeared, bringing with it the familiar cheeriness that usually settled there. Tigress smirked, relieved to see her best friend back to her normal self and stood up fully again. Viper, in turn, dipped her head politely:

"Thank you."

Tigress nodded once before her ears perked to a distant sound behind her that forced her head to turn to it. She recognized it instantly as Po panting and the continuous _thuds _his feet made as he got closer to the two of them. Rotating back around to meet the snake warrior, she was surprised to find an unusually devious look on her face.

"Bet we can beat them home," she said, arching her body in preparation to sprint.

Tigress adopted the same expression and fell to her front paws, her muscular shoulders set into place, long tail swishing, and her hind quarters waggling playfully - all itching with the same desperate need to run as fast as possible.

"Bet I can beat _you_," she growled.

"Deal!"

A flash of green and orange and the two masters raced off in the same direction; dust being kicked into clouds behind them and the Jade Palace coming into further detailed sight from its resting spot atop the Jade Mountain.

"You know we're starting to sound like Monkey and Mantis," chimed the snake.

"How sad," retorted the tiger.


	4. A Festive Afternoon

**Sorry, sorry, sorry for the LONG update - but I was really in a writer's block with this chapter. I needed to be able to prepare the next one before I even _began_ writing this one. It'll make sense once the next chapter is up and running (which will be sooner than the amount of time this one took, I promise)! I apologize if this chapter seems pretty boring, not _a lot_ of stuff happens in this one, I'm afraid. But it's all a setup for the secrets revealed in chapter 4 (5 if you include the prologue)! So I ask you to enjoy and keep on your toes - the next addition could come out of nowhere!**

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><p>Viper watched with considerable resentment as the tiger sprinted a few paces ahead of her. She hated to admit defeat, but how could she not when the Jade Palace and the center of the Valley of Peace were both, clearly, within less than a mile away? The race that the two female warriors were participating in was practically over.<p>

"Hey, no fair! You have _four_ legs!" she hissed irritably, after coming to the conclusion that catching up to the sprinting feline was futile.

Tigress just cocked her head behind her, one of her rare smirks decorating her face. "Excuses, excuses!" She skidded to a grinding halt – dust being thrown into clouds from her front and back paws – when she reached a bridge crossing over one of the flowing rivers leading through the villages of the Valley. Viper soon stopped as well, with a less-than pleased expression on her usually delicate features.

The snake was about to slither onto the bridge when an orange paw stopped her. She looked up to see a playfully expectant look on Tigress' face – her left brow raised and blinking with eagerness. "I think there's something you're forgetting."

Viper got the idea pretty quickly, scowling as she complied, "Alright, fine! _You win!_ Happy?"

"That's all I wanted." Tigress straightened to her full height again, placing her paws behind her back and walking across the bridge with a hint of smugness in her step.

"Oh, you can be so _vain_ sometimes; you know that?" the serpent chided in frustration as she slithered by the tiger master's side.

Tigress grinned a little further. "Perhaps. But at least I don't throw tantrums when I loose."

Viper lightened her mood at that, eventually throwing a smile of her own into the mix as well. "Hmmm, only when I loose to _you_, you big, silly, fur ball!"

The striped feline just chuckled and rolled her eyes kittenishly as she and her slithering friend crossed the river and entered further into the valley.

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><p>The tiger and the snake where about to leave the farming villages of the Valley behind them, when Tigress pricked her ears at the sound of panting and thundering footsteps. The image of the out-of-breath panda already entered her mind.<p>

"Whew! W-We didn't think we'd _ever_ catch up with you guys!" Po informed as he successfully joined the party of two female warriors. Although, it took him a considerably long time to regain his composure. Within that time, Crane swooped behind them, with Monkey and Mantis trailing as last.

"Speak for yourself," the avian added, tossing the panda a harmless, beaky smile. He folded his wings to his side.

The procession of six walked in silence for a while; just about to enter the center of the Valley. A small incline was their last obstacle. The Dragon Warrior gave a sigh of frustration at having to further strain the muscles in his legs before prompting his fellow warriors, "So what're you guys gonna do when he get back to the Palace?"

"Well," A certain bug responded first, happy to relax a little on Crane's hat. "I'm not sure about the rest of you, but I plan on taking it easy for, hopefully, the next couple of hours! I'm beat!"

"I know how you feel," Crane sympathized. "I mean, it would just be cruel if we returned home to find that there was…"

His sentence was cut short by the sight that greeted each of the warriors when they ascended the incline to the main village of the Valley of Peace. Crowds and crowds of citizens swarmed through all parts of the city, all eyes fixated on them!

With a unified hollering welcome, every single one of the hundreds and thousands of citizens immediately started clapping, dancing, and throwing all sorts of decorative confetti into the air. Firecrackers went off, creating colorful clouds of smoke and raining showers of brilliantly shining embers. An orchestra of varying instruments suddenly added a both rich and lively tune to the mix as the stunned Kung Fu masters slowly progressed through the village. A pathway through the street was made clear for all six of them. They hardly noticed, though - their eyes were marveling at every_thing_ and every_one_. Lanterns and banners of all sorts where hung from nearly every edifice – each involving some sort revered image of either one or all of the warriors and an honoring slogan attached to it.

Through the extremely loud oriental music, an echoing chant soon rose into the already festive environment:

"_Fur-ious Five…Dra-gon Warrior…Fur-ious Five…Dra-gon Warrior!"_

Taking in the colorful sights before jumping into a mobile happy-dance, Po exclaimed, "Whoa! Is this all for us?"

"Well, based on the names they're calling, I'd say 'yes'," answered Tigress.

Monkey suddenly nudged Crane in the wing and sent him an amused grin. "Bet you regret complaining before, huh?"

The avian couldn't help but return a bashful look. "Well, how can I not? This really _is_ a great 'thank you' present."

The respected warriors found themselves stopped in front of Mr. Ping's restaurant, all standing before Master Shifu, next to him, Zheng, and finally, Po's dad, himself. A clearing had been prepared for the three of them, and in turn, the heroes as well. They immediately recognized their greeters and bowed respectfully. It was Master Shifu who approached them first, beaming happily with his hands toting his peach tree staff behind his back. The sun bounced off his silk, green robe, signaling his new position as Grandmaster to the Valley of Peace and to Kung Fu, itself.

His students immediately punched a paw/hand/wing/'thingy' into their other open palm, uttering, "Master…"

The red panda blinked at them, the smile never leaving his face. He spoke with enthusiasm that matched his expression, his voice deep with meaning. "Well done, my students!" He gave them a moment to remove themselves from their bows to look at him, surprise all adorning their features. "Today, you all have proven, yet again, your devotion to this Valley as its protectors. Please know that because of this, you have earned my approval and my respect as your master."

He stepped back into the line with Mr. Ping, giving the Palace messenger, Zheng, the chance to waddle toward them next. His beak was pulled back into a pleased grin as well. He held his wings out on either side of him, as if in regards to the atmosphere. "And as a token of _our_ respect, as the citizens of this Valley, we have provided this lavish festival in your honor. And additionally, out of the kindness of your Master Shifu…" he turned slightly in the red panda's direction, who nodded once, "You have been granted the rest of this day off so you can enjoy the festivities as you wish!"

The six kung fu masters' eyes lit up in excitement, each briefly glancing at each other, as if wanting to find confirmation in what the anxious goose had actually proposed!

The dark feathered goose fell in line back with Shifu, signaling for Mr. Ping to finally approach his son and his friends. "And to start: a free bowl of my famous noodle soup for each of you!"

A clamor of clapping and hollering in joy from the other citizens soon followed the old goose's statement. They were obviously stunned that the restaurant owner was finally going to give his soup away for free, and for a rightfully good cause. He ushered the masters and proceeding customers into his shop with a confident wing. "Come, come – the merriment awaits!"

* * *

><p>"Guys, I'm <em>stuffed!<em> I couldn't eat another bite!" wailed Po as he and the Furious Five walked through the many village streets, holding his large stomach with a firm paw.

They each waved to a couple greeting villagers before Mantis whispered into Monkey's ear, "Heh, just wait."

The primate chuckled and grinned before commenting himself, "Same goes for me. Your dad's a great cook, Po, but I don't think I could even _look_ at another bean bun for as long as I live!"

The panda chuckled at everyone else's heartfelt nods and turned his attention to a certain tiger trailing after the group. He fell in by her side and gently nudged her in the ribs. "Hey, what about you, Tigress? It looked as though you hardly ate anything!"

"On the contrary," Tigress paused to place a fist to her lips as she let out an involuntary hiccup. The other paw held her lean stomach. "I ate just enough. And just because I don't have the same appetite as _you_, doesn't mean I go about starving myself."

She lightly poked his belly for emphasis and it jiggled continuously until Po's paw stopped it. "Alright, point taken," he added with a funny smile. But even that wasn't enough to completely sour his good mood. There was too much to be happy about. "So, what do you guys wanna do next? We have the whole day!"

His head swiveled around in all directions, observing the many different shops that he had never really taken the time to stop and explore. A couple of shop owners waved and beckoned the group of warriors closer to their establishments – wanting to entertain them as best as they could. But they each just politely waved their thanks and promised to return another time. There was a wonton booth, a house for peaceful mahjong players, plus various venders and worthy craftsmen selling their respected items – carpets, silks, furniture, pottery, toys for children, and many other things.

Still waiting for something special to peek their interest, the Jade Palace masters wandered aimlessly around the crowded streets, waving and greeting enthusiastic citizens as they went. The team was just about to enter a busy intersection when a peculiar looking institution caught the Dragon Warrior's eye. He turned to the left, where it was situated.

"Hey!" Po called, catching the attention of his comrades. "I've never seen _this_ place before!"

The Five collected at his side and followed his gaze – settling on an unusually located shop. It was squished narrowly between two other stores – the width of it probably being no wider than a closet. Large, oriental tapestries hung around the entrance, decorating the little, dark archway with equally bitter colors - dark reds and purples with splashes of gold. An old oil lamp was suspended from an equally rusty chain by the low, overhanging roof. Smoke rose from its contents and singed some of the tassels of the numerous swatches of fabric.

Mantis looked skeptical. "So, um…does this place have a name, or what?"

Crane spotted a sign above the black doorway. It was dilapidated and the red paint making up the characters was chipping, but he was able to make out the words successfully enough. "_Zi Wei Dou Shu._"

They all looked stumped.

"Wait, I've heard of that. It's a kind of fortune telling, I think," informed Viper.

"Really?" asked an incredulous Tigress.

The snake nodded, "But I don't know anything else about it other than that." She then gave each of her friends a hopeful glance.

Po's smile broadened. "Well I think it's pretty awesome!" He stepped out in front of them a placed a thumb behind him at the dark, little shop. "We should check it out!"

Tigress folded her large arms and raised a brow at him. "Po - you of all people. Haven't you had enough of prophecies and fortune telling for one lifetime?" The others couldn't help but nod at her statement.

The panda shook his head once he realized what the tiger was referring to. "Oh, come on, you guys! That was like – what…" he started counting on his fingers, but gave up once he lost track of the days. "Like, eight weeks ago, right? I mean, _this_ is all just harmless fun!"

"It was exactly a month and six days ago that a prophecy, involving you, came true," Tigress retorted calmly. "And I, for one, consider myself wise enough to learn from past experiences, and not walk blindly into dangerous territory, unless absolutely necessary."

"You don't consider this a necessity?" he asked, frowning.

"No, I don't."

The panda let out frustrated sigh. "Well…what else are we gonna do? I don't see any of _you_ running off with _urgent_ business!"

Crane held up a wing, "Well, actually, I was going to brush up on my mahjong skills and – "

"_Ah!_ Wrong! You were going to all join me in getting our fortunes told in this _bodacious_ store right here!"

The Furious Five just stared at the Dragon Warrior, and vice-versa for a while longer, neither saying a word, before Po fell to his knees and intertwined his fingers of his hands together in a prayer. "Please, you guys! Please!"

They shuffled their feet and stances a little, trying not to be overcome by the panda's childish attempt at convincing them.

"Hey, wait, think of this!" Po prompted in a more excited tone, standing to his stubby feet. "You could all get some _really_ good fortunes! Go on, think about it! All your hopes and desires could be answered and you never would' ave even known!"

Giving their chins a scratch (save Tigress), each of the revered Five brightened a little at the idea their panda friend had proposed. Monkey sighed, "Okay, big guy. You win."

"Let's check it out," Mantis added.

Po threw two fists into the air and pranced around in a circle. "Woo hoo! Yes! Victory!" He then raced towards the waiting shop and beckoned them with a wave of his paw. 'C'mon!"

"It can't be _that_ bad," reasoned Viper.

The Five followed, a seed of excitement being sewn into the pits of their stomachs. Tigress however, was indulging the naturally stubborn side to her. Yes, there was the hope of a good fortune, but was that really strong enough to propel her forward into a possibly dangerous situation? She didn't know. Maybe she should stop thinking about it so much and just go along with the ride. As many times as Po was wrong about certain things, he was also right about quite a lot. Maybe this was one of those positive times.

The kung fu masters entered the black hole of an entrance in a line: Po in front of course, followed by Monkey and Mantis, Viper, Crane, and Tigress trailing last. Inside the small store, it was pitch black, making the warriors a little defensively wary.

Fidgeting uncomfortably, Po was about to call into the darkness when a sun lantern was immediately lit next to them. It hung from a short string by a hook in the low ceiling, surrounded by tottering stacks of loose papers and scrolls. The masters all looked at the light source to find that no one was standing there with a match, like they had expected. Chills ran down the panda's back. This was getting too weird, _too_ fast! Suddenly, a small cricket, with a burnt out match clutched in his talons, hopped out from behind the large sun lantern and landed on one of the towering piles of paper. He looked at the lot of them curiously, yellow eyes shining before the raspy call of an old man caught his attention.

"Qu! Yes, that's a good boy. Thank you for lighting the way for our customers…"

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><p><strong>Whoa, what a weird and creepy place to end, huh? Don't worry, you'll find out who that "old man" is soon enough! As for the weird words on the sign to this shop, "Zi Wei Dou Shu", it actually <em>is<em> an ancient form of Chinese fortune telling. You can look it up on wikipedia and google until your heart's content, but you'll discover its full power in the next chapter, I swear - where I will go into full detail, explaining its mystery for you. I hoped you enjoyed as much as you possibly could, and that your pumped for my next addition. That's when things will start to heat up! Cheers!**

**Oh yes, and the word "Qu" means "cricket" in Chinese/Mandarin. XD**


	5. Meeting the Master

**I apologize for the long update...especially after I promised a shorter one than before. It's just that this chapter is VERY revealing, and once I realized that it would take more brain power to write than I had originally imagined...I sort of fell into another writer's block. I want this chapter to reveal specific plot points, and so I had to revise and scrap many original ideas and replace them with completely new ones. I hope you can all understand. If you can't, there's a part that can't blame you...**

**Actually, this chapter was intended to incorporate Tigress' actual fortune, but then it would have been, like, a 12 page chapter. I figured your brains would have melted with that much intense reading. That, and the fact that it would have taken me even longer to update. So I guess I gave you a bit of a breather with this shortened version. The next chapter, for sure, will go deeper into Tigress' fortune. But still, quite a lot of clues are hidden in this one. All you gotta do is search for them! ^^ There is an extensive color scheme going on here (hence the title) - in honor of the deep ones expressed in both Kung Fu Panda films. **

**Well, don't let me hold you up! Read on and enjoy! :)**

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><p>The lit lantern beside the warriors made it infinitely easier to observe the contents of the shop. It was surprisingly large with (from what they could see) deep cavernous rooms that fed into another like a maze or labyrinth. This directly contradicted what had been implied by the outside of the store – all squished and compacted into a narrow space. The room, or a lobby of sorts, that they were currently standing in, was crimson red due to the many rugs and tapestries of the same colors hanging from the walls. Piles of paper and scrolls where <em>everywhere<em> – some of them literally acting as pieces of furniture. Empty teacups and dishes rested precariously atop the numerous stacks. A tall, large desk lay situated on their right, where the lantern dangled over. Across from them was a small sitting area – an arrangement of oriental chairs around a small tea table. Behind that, the light was not able to shine that far back in the singular room, but the rough outlines of a completely outrageous supply of more stacked volumes and scrolls took up the remaining space; so tall and massive that they skimmed the ceiling.

Crane lightly flapped his wings once or twice before folding them at his sides again. This action, however, caused a cloud of dust to be uprooted from their resting place on the shop's furnishings. The rest of his team let out quiet coughs while the avian simply whispered, "Oh, sorry!"

Tigress almost hissed as a stray speck of lint floated delicately onto her nose. _"This had better be worth it, Po!"_ She thought to herself, briefly running a paw across her face to wipe it clean.

"Um, hello?" Po asked the scraggly voice, leading he and his friends further into the lobby-like room.

"I heard you the first time – you need not repeat it!" The six warriors jumped slightly at the unexpected irritability in the creepy voice's words. There was a light cough and then came a couple of identifiable sounds – rustling of paper, screeching of a chair, and the light thud of a cane tapping on the carpeted floor. "Ah yes, I know _exactly_ who all are…"

Po was slightly taken aback. "Y-You do?" he prompted.

"Indeed! Masters Po, Tigress, Crane, Viper, Monkey, and Mantis! I have to admit, I was a little surprised when the universe foretold that the Dragon Warrior and the Furious Five would wander into my humble shop. Curious, isn't it?"

The panda's green eyes widened and the Five just exchanged peculiar glances. "Whoa…the universe really told you all that?" The rotund warrior took a step forward, edging closer to the dark hallway he imagined the voice carried through.

A chuckle was heard and then, "Excitable Dragon Warrior, you will learn the extent of my abilities and the power of _Zi Wei Dou Shu_ by the end of this night, I assure you." At that, Tigress immediately whipped her head around to face the open entrance behind her, only to discover that it was indeed after sunset, that early evening was upon them. But the sounds of city life told her that the night was not over due to the setting sun. Festivities would surely commence the entire night in their honor. "Oh, please do come in! Eh, Qu – if you don't mind…" Suddenly, the green cricket jumped lightly onto a tottering stack of loose paper and smiled politely at each of the masters. "My formidable attendant will lead you to my table."

"Please follow me this way, honorable Jade Palace warriors." A _click_ or two (similar to the ones Mantis made) and Qu had bounded into the leading hallway. The utterly intrigued panda and his admittedly curious friends walked carefully behind the insect, careful not to loose the sense of his presence once the lit lantern in the red room no longer offered them visual help (except Tigress, who was able to see in the dark thanks to her feline eyes).

Ahead, she could see the jade-green decor of the small room ahead of them. Although, at the same time, she found it hard to ignore the uncomfortable narrowness of the walls in the hallway. It made the orange fur along her spine prickle slightly. She unintentionally verbalized her suspicion when she uttered a low chuff*.

The unusually rare sound floated directly into Po's left ear. Concerned, he twisted his head behind him to face her. "Hey, what's up? Something wrong?"

Tigress didn't bother glancing back at him - just kept observing the surroundings with skeptically sparkling, amber eyes. "I don't know yet." Her own ear twitched and instantly swung her head in the direction in which (to Po) an inaudible sound had disturbed her. "Maybe…"

Leaving the dark hallway behind them, they all eventually found themselves in the brightly lit, green clad room Tigress had noticed before. It was smaller in size, as it rested before a fork in the pathway. On their right, a smaller, narrower hall stretched out of this tiny room, completely sunken in ominous darkness, while on their left, a pair of decorative double doors lay situated. They paused in front of it. Qu settled himself onto one of the golden handles.

Behind the door was a collection of violent rustling. Everyone's ears strained to hear the hidden commotion.

"Oh, where's that blasted scroll! I left it under the one pertaining to the history of turtle shell reading! And I'm sure I placed _that_ one…eh…Q-Qu!"

The cricket shook his head in an embarrassed fashion before imploring politely, "Please wait here." He slipped evenly through the keyhole below him.

The six masters leaned in a little closer to the door out of pure curiosity.

"Master, I can see that you're busy, but the Jade Pa – "

"My dear Qu, you simply _must_ help me find that scroll I was reading this morning! I selected it specifically for this encounter with the Furious Five and Dragon Warrior. Oh, quickly, before they arrive! Rivers – the geography of China's rivers! I need – "

"But Master, they have _already_ arrived! Right outside the door!"

"_Hiya!_ Damn my disorganization. Qu, remind me afterwards to employ a maid! This is simply ridiculous. Now, don't you flick your antennae at me! Quickly – prepare yourself!"

At the clearing of the 'Master's' throat, each of the Five cautiously retracted away from the door. All except Po, who stupidly kept the side of his cheek pressed firmly to the wood. Within seconds after, the two ornately designed doors creaked open until they lightly thudded against the walls on each side– pushing back the panda's face and making him stumble backwards in shock. A well-illuminated study, slightly hidden by drapes adorning the doorway, awaited them. They would have easily entered had they not restrained themselves by politely waiting for Qu's permission. But looking around for him and seeing no little green insect other than Mantis caused a chill to overcome the masters. Had the doors…opened by _themselves_?

"Please, respected guests, come right inside!" came the suddenly genial, old voice. The curiosity as to _who_ and _what_ this person was, was beginning to brim in each of the Five and Dragon Warrior.

In a small cluster, they followed the request and carefully advanced through the parted drapes of the doorway and into the glowing study. The room was, as guessed, a completely different color than the rest. This one was designed according to the hues of teal and purple. Fabrics and silks from all spans of China hung from every corner. There were enough variations of patterns and textures to make a person dizzy with fascination. Hundreds of chattering baubles and wind chimes gently occilated from their attachments to the ceiling – which was a painted astrological map of the stars, planets, and identifiable constellations. Along different places of the four walls, rested three heavy, wooden scroll cases, containing many left unfurled and pilled carelessly.

The main light source was about a dozen lit candles surrounding a large, beautifully designed desk and chair. Scattered on the desk were quills, calligraphy brushes, inkbottles, random sheets of parchment, and (you guessed it) volumes of scrolls strewed mostly at the corners. Approaching the desk, the six warriors observed the many sights and sounds that surrounded them.

"By all means, do make yourselves at home," the scraggly voice uttered. But, creepily enough, there was still no body attached to this voice! It was closer than ever now, but there seemed no other physical person here other than themselves and the usually reserved cricket. Another gentle chortle and it continued, "Although, I would never consider this messy, old place anything like the inside of the remarkable Jade Palace, am I right?"

_Thump!_

"Ow!"

Swiveling their heads in the immediate direction of the desk, the warriors' eyes rested on the figure of an old chow chow raising himself up from the floor and rubbing his incredibly golden, fluffy head with a paw. Although his eyes were squinted closed (due to his failing sight as an old man and the structure of his head), he still could tell the direction of his guests and faced them. A black-lipped smile spread across his squished face. "But perhaps you could generously indulge a simple chow, like myself." With a grunt and one hand balancing himself on the desk, he bent down and retrieved his gnarly wooden cane from the carpeted floor. He then collapsed into his large chair behind him, leaning said cane against one of the table legs.

Intrigued by this interesting little dog, the six kung fu masters looked at each other and shrugged unnoticeably. Soon, they were all crowded around the other end of the desk. Both Tigress and Crane nudged Po forward, signaling that it would be he who would introduce themselves correctly. The black and white warrior gave a hesitant grin as he bowed as respectfully as was possible for his naturally unmannered ways.

"Uh, thanks for letting us come in and all. We – "

"Now, now, hold on there, Panda. Give me one more second to…" he paused, running his paws over the silk of his purple robe but apparently not yielding satisfying results. "Oh gods, where are my – Qu, have you seen – "

"Your glasses, Master?" prompted the cricket, whom had suddenly appeared before the golden furred dog with a large pair of spectacles in his grasp.

Pawing them gently before excitedly taking them from his attendant, he swabbed them with the cuff of his robe. "Thank you, my dearest Qu. I'm not sure how I could ever manage without you." He carefully placed them on the end of his large nose and suddenly revealed his beady eyes. But due to the magnification of the glass, his normally tiny eyes were reflected enormously, taking up most of the space provided by the spectacles. It was an admittedly funny sight. Viper had to slap Monkey with the tip of her tail to silence his inappropriate snickering.

"Ah! Welcome at last!" announced the chow joyfully, spreading his pudgy arms out wide. "Although it is fate that has led you to my midst, you should know that I, Master Mousu*, still considers this a great honor and thanks the heavens for this opportune evening."

Viper smiled as she slithered forward and arched her body into a bow too. "We are delighted ourselves, Master Mousu."

The chow grinned. "Oh, please, amongst you six, I am simply Mousu." He paused for a brief moment to push aside his other busy work from his desk, revealing a large mat from underneath it all. "Now, let us not dwindle our time away. As you will learn, _Zi Wei Dou Shu_ is a more _pensive_ form of fortune telling and requires the cooperation of both master and pupil."

Each of the warriors grew a little more interested at the chow's intricate words. Although Tigress still considered this whole situation to be suspicious and possibly dangerous, her curiosity was touched, if even just a little bit.

Mousu continued, "I will be looking into the hidden futures of each of you based on your connection to the stars…" he gestured to the ceiling above, completely adorned with a detailed and extensive array of stars. "…And the five elements, of course." He then indicated a hand-woven mat that took up the entire span of the table frame. Weaved into it was the outline of a five-pointed star with a circle at the top of each point. Under each circle were the mandarin characters: 木 (wood), 火 (fire), 地球 (earth), 金屬 (metal), and 水 (water).

Each of the masters gathered closer around it and noticed the old chow rummaging through a drawer in his desk. "Ah, here it is!" dangling from his paw, he pulled out a blue/purple, cloth bag with a golden piece of string tied to the end of it. Something heavy must have been resting in the bag, due to the way it appeared greatly weighed down.

Looking back up at their curious faces, Mousu had an expression of brimming excitement. "Yes, yes, that's right – gather 'round."

Turning over the indigo colored bag, the aged dog poured out at least a dozen or so polished stones. They were all roughly about the same size, but texture wise, looked considerably different from another. He collected them all in the center of the star on the mat and uttered warmly, "Now…this is what you must do…"

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><p>"Ha ha! You hardly need my skills to tell you that you have healthy amounts of fire and metal in your chi, Dragon Warrior! Your enthusiasm is part of what makes you such an adequate kung fu master! But, according to my mat…" he adjusted his spectacles on his snout, carefully observing the readings on said mat. "…You could do with a little more earth - practicality, stability, and harmony - to balance you out."<p>

The panda's smile fell a little and looked down at the mat scattered with stones before returning to the aged chow, slightly concerned. "Well…could that be dangerous? How imbalanced am I?"

Mousu simply took another sip from a teacup before replying, "One who is lacking in a solid foundation in earth may be considered reckless. And frankly, my son, with the kind of profession you are in, I would consider recklessness to be potentially quite dangerous!"

Po frantically looked behind him to catch a glimpse of his teammates, growing more troubled. "Whoa, you're right! I mean, a lot of my victories are based on really gusty – and totally awesome – moves! One of you guys could get hurt if I'm not more…you know…careful!"

"_Bah_, it does no good to make yourself crazy or sick over these kinds of readings! _Zi Wei Dou Shu_, in no way, promotes the idea of changing your inner self! Fulfilling your true nature is the key."

The Dragon Warrior listened intently, a little relieved by the little dog's calming words. "Oh…that's alright, I guess."

Mousu nodded. "So then, for you, Dragon Warrior, this _should_ be quite an easy challenge due to your recent obtainment of inner peace. Follow your gut more closely when it comes to acting or decision-making. The element of earth is often associated with the stomach, so indulge it a little, why don't you?"

Monkey patted Po's portly belly and sighed amusedly. "Well, it was nice having a full kitchen every day, but now…"

The rest of the Five startled chuckling while Po just frowned. "Ha-ha, very funny," his voice dripping with sarcasm. He then turned back to the old chow with a newfound smile. With a bow he addressed, "Thank you, Mousu. I will do my best to follow your instructions. I can tell ya, it won't be too hard."

A raspy laugh of his own and the little dog gathered his stones back into his bag. "Oh, my pleasure, Dragon Warrior, my pleasure…"

Po bounded up from his seat and wiped around to face a particular female tiger. "Okay Tigress, it's your turn – last one!" Said feline had situated herself farthest behind the troupe, distracting herself with her own thoughts. She quickly lost interest in the process of the fortune telling once Mantis (who was the first) had participated. None of her friends, nor the practically blind Mousu noticed her gentle retreat to the back of the room, and that satisfied her. But now, as she faced the enthusiastic panda, her eyes couldn't help but spring into 'analyze mode', noticing how he held out a paw to the empty chair before her.

Plastering a small smirk onto her white muzzle, she stepped forward and placed a paw on the back of the chair. "I suppose it is," she paused for a second before proposing, "Listen, why don't you all go on ahead? Once I'm done here, I'll catch up with you."

The five remaining warriors looked a little surprised by this notion. Crane scratched his head from under his hat. "Are you sure? We don't mind waiting for you."

The feline just waved her hand at them. "Nonsense, I insist. That is, unless you're all willing to chip in to pay for Mousu's services, here?" Her grin increased more coyly.

Exchanging uncertainly nervous glances, the masters clustered together and bustled to the door they had before used as an entrance. "Hey, we'll just see you later, Tigress! We don't want to intrude on your reading, so you just get back to us when you're done! Thank you again, Mousu! You too, Qu! Maybe we'll all come by again for a cup of tea or something – okay, goodbye!"

With that, a slam from one of the double doors was the last thing anyone heard before Tigress found herself alone with the old chow and the silent cricket in the corner of the room. Her ears pricked at the sound of stones hitting against something considerably soft. Turning around to face Mousu, she found him patiently dropping his rocks neatly onto the mat again. She watched him for a silent minute before his gummy smile and magnified squinting eyes raised up to meet her.

"Won't you take a seat, dear?" he gestured to the vacant chair across from him. "I have been very eager to give _you _your reading today."

The tiger's scarlet eyes narrowed at his last statement. She had no idea what he meant by that, but she _was_ certain she didn't want to find out. Blinking herself away from her thoughts, she stated politely, "With all respect, Mousu, I have to decline your offer. To be frank, I was dragged into your shop sort of against my will…and my better judgment."

Mousu raised a fluffy brow, his smile unfaltering. "Better judgment?"

"Not to dishonor your skills and profession, but my comrades and I haven't had the best luck with fortune telling in our recent past." Tigress explained with a hint of apology in her tone. "Based on my experiences, I consider it unwise to tamper with _any_ kind of divination."

The old chow suddenly beamed a little brighter, "Ah, yes! The infamous 'warrior of black and white' prophecy! I must say, my young pupil's talents really created quite a quandary for her, and you, no doubt. But she handled it with the utmost of grace and I couldn't – "

"Wait, wait!" Tigress interrupted while waving a paw in front of Mousu. "Did you say…your 'young pupil'?"

"That I did!" he yipped happily.

"You mean the Soothsayer…was _your_ _student_?"

"Soothsayer? Is that the title she's given herself these days? Well, I'd hardly trade in a pretty name like Suan Ming* for 'Soothsayer'! But to each her own, I suppose."

Tigress just stood staring at the small dog for a moment, processing this newfound information. She then gestured to the mat and stones on the desk. "But I don't recall the Soothsayer ever practicing _Zi Wei Dou Shu_, specifically."

Shaking his head slightly with a chuckle, he responded, "My child, I know _many_ forms of fortune telling. _Zi Wei Dou Shu_ is just my preferred choice of divination practice. It puts dim sum on the table, so to speak. I trained my pupil to explore the same for herself. She chose her bowl, I chose my simple rocks and mat."

The large feline observed the items on the table, eventually looking back towards the aged chow. "Well, that makes more sense…I guess." There was another moment of hesitation before she reached into her waist wrap and pulled out a few golden coins. Once she had gently weighed them in her paw, she held them out to Mousu. "I surely appreciate what you've done for my teammates, and I'm willing to pay you entirely for five readings, even though you only gave – "

In a flash, the little dog snatched her extended paw into his grasp, unexpectedly yanking her closer to him and jostling the coins out onto the floor – where they chimed, chattered, and rolled away. Tigress was stunned beyond belief. Her crimson pupiled eyes dilated in complete shock. She couldn't believe she had been 'overcome' by this ancient looking chow chow. From the way he moved – at a snail's pace! His gentle, senile, old ways – in no way – let on that he could triumph over Master Tigress like this! Granted, it was a simple snatch by the wrist, but she couldn't honestly say that she'd seen it coming. The tiger then mentally berated herself, reminding her to never underestimate a stranger again. It appeared that there were more Oogway-type characters out there than she had imagined.

"For instance," Mousu uttered, not turning away from his intent observing of her padded paw. "I am also quite gifted in palm reading." Tigress opened her mouth, prepared to speak, when he briefly held up one of his paws in front of her face. "Not a peep," he warned, still scanning her palm. "The universe told me you would need my help, but I didn't expect _this_ much."

The large, orange feline's eyes narrowed this time, and her ears folded back a little. There it was again – that ominous statement - as if this whole visit was more than just a time-waster. She decided to withhold her judgment until this small dog chose to set her paw free. Tigress may have been stubborn and headstrong, but she wasn't unnecessarily rude – and certainly wasn't about to (perhaps) further insult this aged master and tear away from him.

Instead, she just watched him trail his small, chubby fingers lightly across her pads. She couldn't feel it, but she imagined that it probably tickled a bit. Not a sound passed between the two of them until Mousu's thumb brushed against something that peaked his interest. A tiny, trailing ridge along the outskirts of her palm pad. Shifting his fingers a little farther north, he discovered a smaller one directly adjacent to it.

"Hmmm…" he mumbled to himself while gently rubbing his bearded chin.

Tigress' ears pricked. "What? What is it?"

Mousu glanced up at her for a moment. "You're sure you don't feel me touching it?"

"Touching what?"

The dog gazed back down, running his thumb along the tiny structures again. "Interesting…" Another pause and then, "Your paw is scarred, my dear. Heavily scarred."

The female tiger's eyelids dropped a little in bored disappointment. "Well, yes. That comes with being a kung fu master."

"True…" muttered the canine. "But the fact that they are hidden – under your fur, that is. And that you can no longer feel them, is quite…_revealing_."

"I can't feel anything," she informed nonchalantly, trying to suppress the springing feelings of agitation she suddenly felt.

"Nothing? Nothing at all?" inquired the chow, his tiny blue eyes sparkling with fascination.

"In my paw? No."

Mousu's eyes widened greater as he instantly refocused back onto her palm, studying it with inquisitive fervor. "How remarkably interesting!" he exclaimed.

"To what, exactly?" She raised a skeptical brow, uncertain as to where this was leading.

He quickly dropped her paw and returned to the prepared stones and mat before him. Pleased that everything appeared to his liking, he glanced back up at Tigress with a mystical looking smile on his squished, golden-furred face.

"I intend to tell you. Take a seat."

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><p><strong>Now you have all officially met the ancient, Master Mousu! His name is pronounced, <em>"moe-soo"<em>, which translates into "seeing-eye dog" Get it? He's a fortune teller, so he can '_see'_ into the future! And...he's a dog! A chow chow! 3**

**Also, Suan Ming = "to tell fortunes"**

**Anyway, hope you all enjoyed! Stay tuned for an awesome fortune reading! :D**


	6. What Fate Has In Store

**Haha! I nice and LONG chapter for all you lovely readers! 12 pages on Microsoft Word and this is what it comes to look like! I hope your eye muscles are nice and revved up by the time you're done reading this! So, things are really starting to pick up in this chapter! Tigress finally gets her fortune. Will it be good or bad? Well you gotta read and find out, silly! Don't let me stop ya - go on ahead! READ!**

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><p>Tigress sternly hesitated, not fully accepting of Mousu's offer. But the chow simply grinned a large, black-lipped smile as his tiny eyes squinting genially.<p>

"My dear…" he approached, his voice smooth and gentle. "Certainly even _you_ can see that there are scars beyond your understanding that you have long repressed."

The female tiger narrowed her eyes at the dog. She rapidly contemplated his words over in her mind, specifically the part about the scars, and focused her attention down to her paw dangling at her side. She turned it over so her orange eyes could examine the palm. Brows then lowering threateningly to her nose, she closed her open paw into a fist and dropped it by her side again.

Returning her fully retracted pupils at Mousu, she replied in a tone that did not completely accept his criticism, "Of course. I never said that I was perfect. However, I am not the only one – everyone on this earth has parts to themselves that they choose not to understand."

The aged chow's beady brown eyes lit up at once and he slightly jumped in his seat. "Exactly!" he exclaimed, pointing a chubby finger at her. The tiger's sensitive hearing could pick up the energetic wagging of his curly, fluffy tail as it brushed against the fabric to the back of his oriental chair. "That is _exactly_ the point!"

The fortuneteller took from his robe a metal, tarnished box. He let her examine it closely, making sure she noticed the delicate embossing of a dragon circling around the corners. "Dear child, you are wise enough to know that there are two kinds of people in this world: those who wander through their lives content to spend their existence in their safe hovel…" He flipped open the lid and revealed a neat array of twenty-five or so, wooden matches. "…Not daring to experience the extent of the mysteries that inhabit them. The secrets, the uncertainties, and the long forgotten parts to their tale."

He brushed his thick fingers across the small collection until he found a specific one that ended in a burnt, black, gnarled twist. Used. "Sadly, these people are hardly ever remembered…" Mousu then tossed the used match indifferently over his shoulder and rummaged back into the box of fresh ones. Satisfied, he retrieved an unused match, slapped the metal lid back onto the box, and stuffed it back into his thick, concealing, purple robe.

Holding it out in front of her in a way that made it seem like it contained the mysteries to the universe, he continued, "…Then…there are the rare few who have the courage and the bravery to delve into a world less comfortable than their own – where the true core of their being sits and waits for curiosity and determination to visit it…"

Swiping his padded thumb over the rugged top, the match immediately ignited and a golden flame hissed and burned in front of the two mammals. Smiling at having successfully caught the large feline's attention, he then lit the wick to an obnoxiously almost completely melted candle at the end of his desk. The slowly darkening room was now slightly more illuminated. "_Those_ people have a way of not only fulfilling their soul, but lighting the way for others to do the same." He eventually extinguished the match and set it on a corner of his desk.

Tigress was left again with her thoughts, taking a moment to absorb the cryptic lecture from the aged chow. He simply watched her, eyeing her with a peculiar expectancy. It didn't divert her, however, from her deep assessment.

This time, the female tiger's gaze shifted to her right paw with greater curiosity. Concentrating and letting her eyes scan along her pads and white fur, the kung fu master could identify the same little scars that Mousu had discovered. Tigress could not even remember how they had formed. The ironwood trees? A random escapade with a bandit attack? The exact memory escaped her. The only difference between her and the chow's examination of the healed wounds was that she could not feel them. She even lifted her left paw and lightly dragged it across the scars. Nothing. It was as if they weren't there at all.

Was this a part of what the old fortune-teller was referring to?

"Which kind of person will _you_ be, Master Tigress?" The sound of Mousu's voice momentarily distracted her from her thoughts.

The large, orange feline settled her luminous scarlet pupils on the beaming dog – expression practically unreadable. That was, until it became visibly hardened. It was a while of complete silence before the tiger closed her paw into another unfeeling fist and let the tiniest of sighs escape her mouth. A part of her wanted to deny his pushed suggestion – not finding it necessary to _prove_ herself to this stranger. But, the other part – the part of her that always accepted challenges and a chance to better her skills – rang louder in her mind. It eventually won her over.

Momentarily closing her eyes, she consented by pulling the chair in front of her, aside so she could properly sit in it. Reopening them, she muttered a firm, "Alright."

"Excellent!" the aged chow commented excitedly. "You have made a wise decision, my dear! And for that, I will get started immediately!" He turned his small, magnified eyes onto the stone strewn mat before him and eagerly collected all of his stones into the center of the five-pointed star. He then focused on his patient customer and held out a fat paw. "I will be requiring something of yours to begin."

Tigress frowned slightly. "Pardon?"

"An object – something of value to you!"

"I don't recall you asking – "

"Ah, ah, ah!" Mousu dismissed with a wave of his paw before holding it out again, expectantly. "Any object will do."

Tigress looked down and around at herself very briefly, a look of slight bewilderment on her firm features before returning earnestly back to the fortune-teller. "Well, my apologies, but I don't have anything to lend you at the moment."

Mousu rubbed his bearded chin quizzically. "Hmmm. No item? Well then, something off your person will do even finer. Like…"

He slowly reached out his paw and let it hover awkwardly in front of her face. Tigress' eyes narrowed suspiciously and grimaced painfully at the chow's hand. It was only her politeness keeping her from promptly growling at it. To her horror, he clamped his little grasp on her three whiskers on the right side of her face and proclaimed,

"…These for example!"

A defiant tug and the three whiskers were immediately plucked from their follicles. Tigress' right eye twitched as a reaction, but not from pain (she hardly felt anything), but more from the extreme randomness of the act! She delicately dragged her fingers across her muzzle and felt the absence of the whiskers, a light sigh escaping her throat. They were gone now – nothing more she could do now except wait for them to grow back.

An amused chuckle resonated from the aged canine at the female tiger's expression. With a firm grip around the whiskers and mat all arranged, Mousu squinted his eyes shut until they became just calmly closed. Moments passed in silence. Smoke from the burning candle drifted and wafted around the room. Watching it was quite hypnotizing.

Suddenly, the tranquil fortuneteller tentatively reached out his free hand and levitated it above the group of stones on the mat. Tigress noticed with keen eyes that his grip around her wilting whiskers tightened briefly. Her senses where also heightened by the unexpected breeze that flew in through an open window on their left – the drapes billowing like a dress caught in a gust of wind. Still, Mousu's eyes where closed in a serene kind of mood.

His plump paw then lowered to the stones and selected one with careful hesitancy. The rock was sleek and silver-colored. He only raised it a little bit before letting it role around in his padded palm – getting a feel for the texture and temperature of it. Then, rather abruptly, he slung it across the mat! It landed with astonishingly perfect dexterity into the small, southern-western circle of one of the star points. Under it rested the symbol, 金屬 (metal).

How did he manage that? His eyes were closed for the god's sakes! The tiger master made a conscious effort to keep her jaw from dropping open.

She watched him intently as he, again, reached downwards for a stone. This one he picked up was a dark, muddy, scarlet. It wasn't until his lip twitched for an instant that he accurately tossed it in another seemingly effortless direction. This circle it landed in was directly juxtaposed to the metal one. The character that accompanied it was 火 (fire).

This tentative method went on at a continuously steady speed. Only, the gentle breeze that flowed in through the window increased throughout; to the point where Tigress' remaining, intact whiskers began to sway. The candle flame also began to crackle and grow in spasmodic motions. The fur along Mousu's arms gently prickled whenever the breeze became considerably erratic, Tigress noticed. Both his ears and lips twitched at random intervals – as if he were concentrating on something the large feline could not see. Tigress was not normally the type to be so easily captivated, by what appeared to be, significantly simple tasks. But the chow's precision in his motions still baffled her on a level she wasn't even aware of. Her deep, golden eyes added extra luminescence to the setting, as her scarlet pupils followed Mousu's supposedly calculated movements.

Within minutes, all of the dozen stones had been scattered in differing regions of the mat. Mousu, apparently, didn't need to open his eyes to know that. His tiny mud-colored eyes opened as slowly as he resettled himself more casually back into his seat – no longer fervently gripping the feline's whiskers in his left paw. The harsh breeze that had, after a while, become a regular part of the atmosphere, had abruptly stopped.

Tigress had started observing the newfound information on the woven mat, before the aged canine had a chance to recompose himself. But once he successfully adjusted the spectacles on his scrunched snout, he was able to observe the specific arrangement that had been set up. The five circles positioned atop each point had a fair amount of rocks collected in them. Where there were a few more in others, it was only by a difference of one or two.

Mousu dove his attention to the results of his efforts with a notable intensity. His magnified eyes scanned the mat while he rubbed his entire mouth/chin area. He said little except the occasional, "Hmmm…" or "Uh huh…uh huh," as if he were some physician examining a terminally ill patient. In all honesty, Tigress felt a little bit like that. Not that she was nervous about his 'diagnosis', but more just impatient with his mumbling.

It was a while before he finally spoke discernable words, "My dear, I must say…"

Tigress' ears flattened to her skull once he said no more. She also threw in an undetectable eye-roll.

He started again, this time scratching the top of his head, "…That in all of my years as a an accomplished fortuneteller, a master of _Zi Wei Dou Shu_…I have never seen a reading quite like this one before."

The large feline's eyes dilated at his words, fascination overcoming her senses. She was finding it hard to restrain herself from snarling out a command from him to tell her what exactly he was seeing that she couldn't! Instead, she asked in a very controlled manner, "What exactly do you mean, Master Mousu?"

He sat back a little in his chair and held out his plump paws in reference to the mat. "Well, I find it exceptional how you appear to be well supplied in _all_ the strong-hold elements! Most people who see me are lucky to have _one _of these element filled up – or even just partially! But, you seem dominant in every of those elements available! I've _never_ encountered such a rich soul!"

The proof was there. He pointed a clawed paw to the ring of 火 (fire). It was overflowing with numerous stones, probably with the most in them. "You see, your richly colored pelt and eyes help deeply reflect the amount of fire in you. Those characteristics being…"

"Dynamism, warmth, aggression, and impulsiveness," the female tiger added quickly.

He then snickered a little to himself. "And a little bit of impatience as well." Tigress smirked.

Mousu was again distracted by his work. "Hmmm…yes, yes, very interesting…" She noticed him eyeing the ring of 金屬 (metal), which was probably the second most-filled circle available. He waved a paw at her, as if beckoning an answer to an upcoming question. "Uh, what year were you born in, my dear?"

"Oh, uh…" Tigress' scarlet pupils contracted and her ears lowered slightly. Although she wasn't asked this question very frequently, she always had a hard time answering it when she was. "Of course, but I'm afraid I can't give you the exact date."

"You can't? But then that would..." he paused when the realization hit him. "...Orphan?"

Tigress looked up at him with surprise shining in her amber eyes. She was about to ask how he knew that, considering she almost _never_ talked about her past, and certainly not with villagers. But then remembered that he was an exceptionally well-trained fortuneteller. What he knew about her was obviously more than just an educated guess.

"Yes. I never knew my family so, naturally, I wouldn't know."

"Ah, I understand," uttered the aged chow a little solemnly. He then cleared his throat and added more lightheartedly, "Surely, you must be able to give me a year, then?"

Tigress shrugged slightly, "Sometime during the year of 870, I suspect."

The fortuneteller's tiny eyes widened in enthusiastic discovery "870*! Why, that was the year of the – " He immediately looked up at his starry map on the ceiling and pointed a finger when he noticed the specific, hand-painted constellation. " – Metal Tiger!"

The large feline's keen eyes instantly fixed onto the image of the tiger above her. It was white and locked in a prancing stance. Although she couldn't interpret the series of marks and graphs that told the exact positioning of the astrological sign to its involvement of the calendar, she was equally as intrigued by this strange coincidence.

"How remarkable!" A smile crossed his golden, scrunched muzzle as he glanced between his mat and Tigress. "It all adds up perfectly! Master Tigress, you appear to be completely governed by the element of metal, which you know means firmness, rigidity, persistence …"

"…Strength, determination, and self-reliance," finished the kung fu master, mind slowly piecing together what Mousu had unraveled. She looked back up at the aged chow from her lap with an expression wide with wonder. Her attention had been fully caught.

"Ha! Right again!" beamed the fortuneteller.

Tigress furrowed her brows in concentration before seriously asking, "But what exactly does that have to due with my future?"

"Ah, yes, I was just getting to that. You see, my child, while you have adequate levels in fire and metal – the strong elements, I couldn't help but be a little bit concerned with _this_…" He scooted the mat closer to her and gestured to one circle in particular.

"Water," Tigress read aloud the symbol. There were absolutely _no_ stones whatsoever collected in that part of the mat. Not a single one. While every other element was either moderately or completely filled to the brim with rocks.

"Yes, dear, water – the least _strong_ of the five, but nonetheless among the most powerful. This puzzles me greatly – given the peculiar fact that water is metal's compliment – it's direct opposite!" The animation in his tiny eyes was visible. "Introspection, solitude, philosophy, truth, and mystery – you appear to be missing one, of not all, of these!" He paused to take a breath, preparing for his ultimate fortune reading. "From what I can tell, an inner conflict, a long forgotten mystery, or an unanswered question plans to reveal itself to you, Master Tigress."

"An…_unanswered mystery_?" questioned the female tiger.

"Why yes," Mousu answered simply. "This could be anything in your life that you've chosen to forget. Or perhaps, never completed or have left unresolved."

Tigress' left ear twitched. Did she like the direction this conversation was going in? Not particularly. But she couldn't fully decide why. Whatever the reason, it created a deepening pit in her stomach that made her feel uncomfortable.

The golden-furred dog continued, "After all, as you said before, aren't there long-repressed events in everyone's lives? Ones that possibly need uncovering?" Tigress nodded but said nothing. She didn't even meet his stare. The silence was beginning to irk her, and more so by the fact she didn't have anything of value break it. Instead, what Mousu proposed caused the fur along her nape to stand erect.

"Why, yours could be, for example…how you were orphaned?"

The female tiger's nostrils instantly flared and her pupils contracted from the impact of his words. As her small ears folded to her skull, she immediately ejected herself from her chair and stood glaring at the dog with a firm stance. Her lengthy tail began swaying rapidly behind her. A grimace spread far across her white muzzle and she tried with all her might to keep the threatening growl in her throat from escaping.

Surprisingly, Mousu's expression was almost completely unchanged. Tigress' expressive brows arched ominously over her piercing eyes. And in a voice as low and dangerous as she could muster, she uttered, "I will forgive you because you know not what you speak of. But I will warn you to _never_ mention that subject in my presence, again."

The old chow tried reconfiguring his words more carefully, "Please, forgive my intrusion, but you know as well as I do that I am quite – "

"No_,_" Tigress snapped, "That is where you are wrong. It can _never_ be fully understood!"

"But not even by you?" Mousu proposed, folding his plump paws together. "The scars that run the deepest are usually the first to request the truth."

"Stop! I will hear no more of this!" she hissed. She struck her heavy, fist-clenched paws into the table, jostling some of the stones from their placement on the map. She was now only about a foot away from his face. Her wild, orange eyes and red cores flashed warningly at the canine's beady brown ones. The humor slowly dissipated from his visage and was replaced with a somber one. Her assertive posture had certainly impacted him more than he intended.

"I can see how this upsets you, Master Tigress. You are a proud and honorable soul. But I am only telling you what you need to hear to fulfill your true nature. I am not your enemy, I am your friend." Still keeping eye contact with her, he pulled out a small scroll from the contents of his robe. "And so I ask you to take this, in the hopes that it will help you in the future."

Tigress retained the stare-off as she exhaled through her nostrils. A bit of her hostility faded, but her self-constructed wall was quickly erected in its place. She reluctantly took the scroll in her paw and drew back from the aged dog, saying, "It's time I take my leave and meet up with my comrades." Before she turned nimbly on her heels, she nudged the golden coins scattered on the ground with her foot. "You know where your money is."

Mousu looked out the dusty window on his right and noticed that night had clearly fallen over the Valley. "Ah, I suppose it _is_ that time, indeed." The tiger warrior stopped outside the pair of double doors to the teal-colored room she was in, her back facing the aged canine. Her ears perked as she heard him chortle kindly, "You have a nice evening, oh venerable, Master Tigress. I truly appreciate you listening as long as you have."

Tigress remained silent, keeping one paw clutched on the door handle, preparing for official permission to leave.

"I pray that the gods will work fate into your favor," the golden-furred dog continued.

Finally the large, striped feline muttered, "As do I…" And swiftly wrenched open one of the doors and exited out of it with just as much haste. Her steps out through the green-walled fork in the hallways were determined and forceful. Her entire posture was assertive – chest pushed out and arm muscles clenched at her side, one paw wrapped furiously around the irksome scroll. The only reason she accepted it was that she considered it his way of apologizing. What he said was inappropriate, by her standards. But that moment had passed. Her new mission was to leave this labyrinth of a shop and find her fellow warriors. That, and try to rid herself of this sudden, pressing headache she had.

Stumbling out of the lobby-like room, she stepped into the cool, refreshing evening air. The entire village was still bustling and scampering in celebration of the festival beforehand. Lanterns illuminated the pathways and streets, little hanging balls of scarlet light interspersed throughout the dark, blue atmosphere.

The kung fu master looked about her and realized that she really had no way of knowing where her comrades were, so she made the decision to travel back to the Jade Palace. They would have no choice but to all consolidate there by day's end. The crisp air had cleared her lungs, but she couldn't say the same for her pounding headache. Her mind was racing with too much information. Normally, it was already full of reminders for all her responsibilities, but now this confusing fortune reading took up any extra space she had reserved for personal thoughts.

With a hand to the side of her head, she tried massaging her temple. It helped. A little bit. What Mousu had said – how could she discern the important parts from the unimportant? Was _any_ of it even plausible? Had what she mentioned about her past a mistake? After all, it had led him to believe that the secret behind it was the deciding factor to the wellbeing of her future. Ridiculous, that's what it was. He may have been a fortuneteller, but meddling into 'off-limits' territory was something she didn't consider "fortune telling".

And that scroll. What had he said about it? That it may help her? What was even in this scroll, anyway?

Curiosity taking over, Tigress unfurled said scroll and examined it as she continued walking down illuminated streets. On it, was a small, but detailed map of China. All of the characters of the names of all the rivers where underlined. Brows scrunching in confusion, her amber eyes caught side of a side note written at the bottom right corner of the opened scroll. The handwriting was small, but she was able to expertly make it out.

"_Master Tigress, for what fate has prepared for you, I have given you this map to aid you. I hope that it does. As I explained, both the stars and the elements foretell a difficult path you will have to take – one that deals not with the body (as a high-ranking kung fu master would be familiar with) but with the mind and the heart._

_I'm sorry that I cannot tell you exactly what to expect, but there are signs that you can keep watch for and analyze yourself. For example, you may have peculiar or odd dreams from this moment out…"_

"Dreams?" Tigress questioned aloud with a sneer. She then returned to the note.

"…_Yes, dreams. Dreams move in the same way water does. They are connected through their equal fluidness, flexibility, and relativity to the moon. My advice is to not disregard them – instead, try and evaluate their meaning. You might be surprised by what you learn._

_Good luck, Master Tigress. I have no doubt that you will triumph above all odds. And that's not just Zi Wei Dou Shu talking. _

_Your friend, _

_Mousu_

Along with his signature was a small, ink paw print. Tigress finished reading, and with a scoffed grunt, rolled up the scroll closed. Although she didn't fully believe his warning, she decided to accept the scroll. Even if its intended purpose was something vague and uncertain, she reasoned that a gratis map of China would always do. However, the pain in her skull had steadily increased, and in turn, it made her a little unbalanced. The greetings she received from civilians where returned with a half-hearted wave and smile. Of course, this didn't matter to them. They were just glad to walk into one of China's greatest heroes.

With a paw placed firmly on her forehead, she continued walking until she saw Mr. Ping's restaurant in the distance. Home was only a Thousand-Stepped staircase away. Suddenly, her ears perked at the sound of someone calling her name. That voice sounded too familiar to be just a mere villager.

"Hey, there she is! Hey, Tigress!"

Stopping, she removed her paw and turned her head to the voice. She saw Po and the rest of the Five bolting over to her. What she expected to see where exuberant smiles, but was instead greeted with frantically wary expressions on all their faces. She immediately regained her composure – standing taller and straighter with a more authoritative air.

"Tigress, boy are we glad we caught up with you!" announced Po once he and his teammates consolidated around the leading tiger master.

"What's wrong?" she demanded, orange eyes flashing.

"Nothing right now," Viper chimed. "Master Shifu told us we've been called on a mission to the State of Ji*, in the north."

"Turns out the city has been having some trouble with invaders kidnapping civilians," added the knowledgeable Crane.

"For ransom?" Tigress inquired.

The avian shrugged. "Not sure. But people are going missing either way. Supposedly, they're coming through from the farther northern provinces. We have to scan and patrol the area."

"And eventually kick those invaders' butts back to their _stanky_ hideaway!" intervened an enthusiastic Mantis.

Tigress didn't blink, her tactful mind racing. "'Coming through from the north'? You mean we've been called to – "

"That's right," supplied Monkey. "The Great Wall."

"Which is _so_ _awesome!_" hollered Po, doing a happy-dance. "I've never been _there _before!"

"Should be! We haven't been there in years!" Mantis bellowed.

The female tiger gave a firm nod. "Did Master say when we are supposed to leave?"

"'As quickly as possible', he said," the serpentine informed.

"Well," Tigress stated, turning to look up at the Jade Mountain where their Palace home rested. "Then I guess we'll leave tomorrow. Better make it back to the Palace, in that case. Come on." The rest of the Five nodded respectfully and made move to follow her to the Thousand Steps. However, there was one who didn't join them so easily...

"Awww! B-But there's still a little bit of festival le – "

"_Now_, Po! Unless you'd prefer to leave right now?" growled the large feline, not even turning her head to face the panda.

She only heard him gasp and stammer, "No, no, no, that's alright! I'm coming!" He caught up to her with his hands folded respectively behind his broad back. "Heh, I guess that's why you're the leader, huh?"

Tigress smirked. "You know it, Dragon Warrior."

* * *

><p>"Won't you <em>please, please, please<em> tell me what your fortune was?" a certain panda begged to a certain tiger as they walked through the Student Barracks to their individual rooms.

"No, Po – for the thousandth time – No!"

"Why not, Tigress? _Please?_" the panda continued to plead, his hands together and fingers meshed.

"I already told you, I just don't feel like talking about it."

"Why, because it was so totally, awesomely amazing that I would faint straight after hearing it?"

"No! It because it was simple, boring! You wouldn't be interested!" She stopped herself and immediately sighed. "What am I talking about? You'd be interested in _anything_."

"Exactly!" Po reasoned. They were nearing each other's rooms and he knew he only had a few more seconds to spare of pleading. "So does that mean you're gonna tell me?"

"No."

"Well then can I at least know why you only have three whiskers?"

"_No!_" Tigress roared, turning on her heels to face the irritating blob of black and white fur. Po was honestly a bit shocked. It wasn't too often that Tigress used her "death glare" on him, but when she did, it really had a habit of freezing him in place. Of course, her roar was way more frightening.

Tigress saw the fear in his green eyes and sighed, "Po, I'm sorry, but I'm a little too preoccupied with the mission tomorrow. Maybe after we come back I'll tell you about the fortune, but not right now."

The shine to his eyes returned almost as instantly as she finished speaking and a smirk crossed his face. "Oh, yeah, that's cool too. Heh, sorry for being such a pain; sometimes I forget how much you have to take care of."

The striped feline blinked her luminescent orange eyes and let out a small chuckle. "You are forgiven. And it's nothing I can't handle." She reached out and placed a paw on the handle of her room door. "Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to get some rest. You should too."

The Dragon Warrior shuffled his feet and nodded. "Yup, that's a good idea. After all, you're the man with the plan – uh, I mean, _wo_-man with the plan! Pretend I didn't say – "

"Good night, Po," Tigress interjected, just about to close her door.

Po just laughed, "Oh yeah, n'good night."

* * *

><p><em>The blood was pounding in her ears and brain. Rushing waves washed over Tigress as she was jostled restlessly left and right, up and down, rubbing her fur in every wrong way possible. Her throat was tight. She couldn't breathe. Air was as scarce as her sense of direction. Chills surged up her spine from the frigid coldness of the water. She wanted to scream, but the fear of loosing any bit of oxygen she had left was too frightening.<em>

_Tigress tried to open her eyes, despite the forceful flow of water to her face. All she managed to see was blinding darkness. Then, in a startlingly fast second, a hard pain shattered into Tigress' forehead. White, hot light engulfed her senses. And through that light there instantly came a luminescent pair of blue eyes, staring at her. They were feline eyes. Frosty and chilling — even more so than her master's. __Suddenly, the blue eyes flashed a sickening green, with a dirty, pink scar trailing down over the lid of the right one. Then they flickered back to the icy blue eyes, and instantly again to green. Dark, ominous chuckling drifted through Tigress' ears that caused her to roar, completely disregarding her need for air. Her roar drowned out the malicious laughing…_

Tigress awoke with a violent start, orange eyes snapping open and scarlet pupils dilating to allow maximum light. She gasped and ejected herself forward from her bedroll. She sat hunched over, panting heavily and holding a paw to her chest. The fur along her nape was standing so erectly, that they could have easily impaled someone. She just stared at nothing for a while, until she could feel her heart rate slowly diminish back to its regular pace. Only then did the tiger close her eyes. She could feel a bead of sweat trailing down her forehead and she lightly swabbed it with her blanket.

Tigress turned her head to the left corner of her room and saw the scroll Mousu had given her resting atop her small dresser. A memory of what the message written inside had informed her of, suddenly returned to her. But it was instantly dropped when she began using all her mental strength to stop the inflow of images from her nightmare. She was able to, but they were replaced by a sudden feeling of nausea – remembering being jostled and thrown for a terrifying ride.

It wasn't until a swamping sensation of fatigue rested upon her senses again, did she finally stop feeling sick. The kung fu master was finally able to breathe through her nostrils again, and straightening her blanket back in order, she lay back down on her bedroll and waited patiently to fall back asleep. A frigid shiver was the last thing she remembered feeling before sleep finally consumed her.

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><p><strong>WHOA! Enough suspense for y'all? No? Well then just wait until the next chapter, which I am super eager to start, and therefore, will have done sooner. So, what did you all think? Honestly, what about that dreamnightmare of hers? pretty creepy, huh? It's supposed to be. And what about Mousu? You guys like 'im? Anyway, let me know what you all think - I'd love to hear it! :D**

**Footnotes: 870 AD (the year I created as Tigress' birth year) actually _was_ the year of the Metal Tiger, believe it or not! You see, I remember reading back in FFcrazy15's "Bandit Lord" that she mentioned "Kung Fu Panda" roughly takes place back in 889 AD, China. So I used that time period to generate a fitting birth year for our beloved tiger master. I used this website to find out that zodiac sign for 870 AD: ?year=890&delta=0&lang=en**

**Also, State of Ji is the ancient name for the current capital of China, Bei Jing, which is actually right next to the Great Wall of China. It's not only fitting, but historically correct. I prefer history to be as accurate as possible when dealing with a time period as early as this one. **

**For more information on the Five Elements, visit: .org/wiki/Wu_Xing**

**Anyway, that is all! Until next time! :D**


	7. Unmentioned Details

**Short chapter, I know, but I got quite a few requests to update as fast as possible. That meant uploading whatever I had completed of the next chapter. And I DO realize that it has been 4 months since my last upload, and for that I am truly sorry. There's not much else I can say except: read, enjoy, and leave a review.**

* * *

><p>Grandmaster Shifu inhaled, and then exhaled just as deeply. The chill of the early morning made his white and brown fur ruffle a bit. Without actually having to open his steely, blue eyes, he could sense the warm glow of the steady sunrise beginning to peak above the distant mountains to the Valley. But the constant coolness of the Dragon Grotto didn't allow the sun's warmth to reach him completely.<p>

"_Breathe in…Breathe out…"_

There he was, the recently appointed Grandmaster meditating perched upon his adopted peach tree staff. His posture was erect while his tiny hands were held up on either side of him, thumb and index finger touching tips. The elderly red panda's entire stance was still, not even his fluffy tail or whiskers twitched in the slightest. That was, except for his naturally elongated ears. They couldn't help but swivel and turn about at the top of his head – quivering at the tiniest rustle of movement. In nature, its ambiance seemed to be an all around and constant, and it was. But Shifu had so often sought the refuge of his coveted grotto that nature's continuous whispers had become normal to him, no longer taking every single, tiny movement as a sign of danger. After all, a master with inner peace didn't normally fret over insignificant sounds – but focused on the mysteries of the universe and their own person.

"_Feel the flow of the universe…"_

Suddenly, his left ear twitched spastically, and it stayed swiveled in the direction behind him for some time. So much so that it caused his entire countenance to become suspicious and less peaceful. He scrunched his furry, white brows together and rumbled his snout. His eyes still remained closed.

"Hmmm…" he grumbled to himself.

Was that sound…the scarping of gravel? And that other noise…could it have been an erratic heartbeat? He daringly opened his eyes, seeing nothing in front of him, but knowing that he was not alone in this scared grotto. He strained for any animalistic giveaway as to who and what this person was. His ears detected no ruffling of feathers and the steady breeze of the air revealed the person to not be a bird or avian, so a vision of Crane was immediately dropped. He also heard no gentle slithering, the caressing of scales upon a rocky surface. No flickering tongue. Viper was also ruled out. No insect chirping or primate snickering, so neither Monkey or Mantis.

The panda? Could it have been the Dragon Warrior trying to get the upper hand on him when he knew the aged master least expected it? Was it a serious test of his stalking skills or was he merely trying to be playful about it? Shifu was getting ahead of himself. In the first place, he failed to detect the massive presence that Po always possessed. No heavy footsteps that would normally give him away. And no grumbling belly that could easily do the same.

No. If it _were_ Po, he surely wouldn't have made it this far into Shifu's domain. This creature was somewhere within the grotto walls, that much was certain. Its heartbeat was mighty and strong. Its presence obvious, yet subtle. As talented as the panda was, he still had a lot to master in the areas of stealth. Besides, that wasn't his _style_ anyway. Po had other ways of 'surprising' his opponents. The aged red panda found it unlikely that he would resort to his weakest skill when secretly confronting his master like this.

Master Shifu's right ear twitched frantically, catching the faintest sounds of an ominously low rumble that reverberated from the hidden creature And then it hit him. A mental image of his pursuer snapped into his mind. He didn't even need to strain to listen to the scratching of stone that it made. Sharp objects being teasingly dragged across rock. He knew who had come to face him, and a small smirk plastered itself onto his aged muzzle.

_WHOOSH!_

A slender and flexible mass threw itself at the red panda with a huge fist balled up and directed with expert dexterity, who was still perched upon his staff. But, in a flash just as fast as the attacker's movements, Master Shifu bent his weight forward onto his platform, causing it to fall forwards with him on it. Immediately, he landed on one of the many stones in a defense crouch, catching his weapon in his hand and twirling it with impressive, speedy movements. The attacker, seeing that their initial assault had been foiled, landed on the exact spot that the red panda had resided in a tuck and roll then ejected itself forward so that it clung with its claws onto the shadowed rocky wall.

Shifu turned to face his opponent, staff held firmly in one hand and the other, palm facing outwards in battle-ready stance. With his knees bent and tail held erectly, he stared amusedly into the orange, gleaming feline eyes that observed him from its grappling position on the stonewall.

He chuckled, still holding his position, "Impressive as always; you still had me guessing until the very end. But you might want to restrain those threatening growls of yours until _after_ the battle has begun."

The gracefully lean silhouette triple-flipped and landed lightly onto an equally shaded area of ground in the cave, its appearance still masked by early morning darkness. Except for its eyes, of course. Its massively hypnotizing amber gaze was locked on the Grandmaster, even as it prowled steadily within its hiding place. Shifu could tell his opponent was smirking as well. "Why thank you, Master," dipping its head but not removing its focus for an instant. "But I feel it gives my rival a slight hint as to _who_ exactly they're dealing with. Fear is the mind's worst enemy, after all," came the smooth and velvety reply. Female.

"It's unlike you to retort this cockily," he smirked.

"Well, that means I still have the element of surprise on my side." With a flash of orange, striped fur and the sheen of red silk, the legendary Master Tigress skillfully lunged herself, fists first, at the prepared master.

He knowingly used her velocity against her with a parallel swipe peach tree staff that sent her forward. But she instantly recovered herself, returning to a tiger-style stance – knees bent, one arm curved upwards behind her head, and the other extended outwards into a mighty fist. She grinned at him, whiskers twitching ever so slightly - all perfectly aware of her master's tactics. She knew him too well…

She struck first again, hardly landing a blow before Shifu swiftly jumped out of the way. The female tiger then sent a cascading wave of furious punches and kicks while still maintaining her stamina. Shifu blocked each with his sacred implement, although soon found himself growing anxious over her pure, relentless strength.

"_She's still getting stronger and faster…" _

Tigress bent backwards in a perfect ninety-degree angle once Shifu decided he had had his fill of being on the defensive, swiping his staff in a complete 360-degree turn whilst in the air. Time seemed to slow down for the Grandmaster as he observed his oldest pupil acting with superior tactfulness to avoid his attack.

"_And more flexible."_

More powerful kicks and punches ensued from both, as did continuous blocking. The striped-feline then saw an opening through her and her master's constant bombardment of strikes. Instinct propelled her and she reached out one of her paws (while still defending/offending herself with the other) and clamped it forcefully on the middle of Shifu's staff. Immediately, the red panda knew he had exposed himself to a serious blow, letting his student even _touch_ the stave.

Upon the instant, Tigress wrenched the Grandmaster's staff out of his grip and promptly propelled herself up and backwards into an impressive Talia Leap, her signature move. Again, time seemed dragged out as he observed the tiger above him, leaping in a spiral with expert flexibility. The moment she landed, he would have humbly expected defeat. But his surrender was premature, for as Tigress extended a foot, so as to land cleanly in an upright position, Shifu noticed that the stepping stone she was aiming to touch down upon had a stalactite directly above it, continuously dripping grotto water onto its surface.

He couldn't help but smirk, simply telling himself that there was no use in warning the warrior.

He quietly watched as the moment Tigress' shoe made contact with the wet stone, that it skidded unsteadily to the point where her entire sense of balance was completely lost. Her amber eyes narrowed in shock when she felt no secure terrain beneath her feet. And before she could even mentally respond to the idea of saving herself, she suddenly landed with a heavy splash into the Dragon Grotto's gurgling ponds.

Master Shifu cringed a tad, both for the fact that cold flecks of water landed against his white fur, and for the embarrassment of his prized student; a humorous smile never leaving his face. He settled back onto the image of a drenched Tigress sitting on her backside with her arms propping her up, her usually impeccably groomed fur now scruffed and dripping. But it was her expression that made him actually release a chuckle. Her heavy brows were lowered furiously to her nose, the pupils to her shining, orange eyes no larger than a mere sliver. Her tiny ears were flattened to her skull as well, and he noticed how the slight curve to her black lips formed an all around _unamused_ scowl.

A growl of displeasure escaped her throat as another chortle escaped Shifu's. She instantly perked her ears at the sound of it, resting her enraged glare on him. But the red panda simply smiled at her, completely unfazed by her threatening expression. He tucked his hands into the sleeves of his green robe and walked nimbly towards her, his limp not paining him for months.

Tigress noticed and removed her paw gripping her master's staff out from the water. When he reached her on the stone before her, he uttered, "_'Balance is the key to all victories'_, as Master Oogway used to say."

The female tiger ruminated on this for a second, before allowing her brows to lift up again and a tiny smile to appear on her muzzle. She looked up towards her master again and let out a light chuckle too, despite her situation. She extended out her paw so as to hand her master back his staff, which he accepted thankfully.

"Or maybe, just a little less water," tested the female warrior in good humor, getting to her feet and briefly examining her soaked clothes and fur.

The red panda raised an eyebrow, "Although we constantly battle with nature, but it is best not to blame it for _our_ mishaps. But that aside, I must commend you for your cunning, your focus, and your undeniable improvement in all aspects of your training, Tigress. You have done exceedingly well. I wouldn't expect any less of you, my student." He gave her a respectful bow with his fist to palm that signaled the end to their training battle, and Tigress gave one back just as swiftly.

"Thank you, Master," she added, straightening up. Suddenly her face fell to that of abashment. "Though I really should have paid more attention to the atmosphere of my surroundings. I'm ashamed to say I failed to remember that I fought you in a grotto; stalactites dripping water onto unassuming stones."

"Ah, but with every failure comes the chance to better one's self. Do not consider your downfalls as your weakness, but perhaps as an advantage."

"I understand, Master."

Shifu rubbed his bearded chin in thought of Tigress as she got onto all fours and quickly dried herself off with a swift shake of her fur. She stood back up to face him, paws folded behind her back in an obedient manner.

"Still, I cannot help but feel this somewhat careless _accident_ in your attack was the cause of a troubled mind, or something of the sort. There are no accidents, after all."

"Another of Oogway's wise sayings." Tigress paused, trying not to make herself appear vulnerable. "But you are right, Master," she added sternly, "And to ambush you in a mock fight was not my only intention by coming to see you this early in the morning. You see, it's about the mission the five and I are requested to take today."

Shifu perched himself again on his staff, retaining his Zen-like stance while observing the feline's features. "Ah, I _do_ see." His face grew hard for an instant. "Well, what is it that concerns you?"

She sighed, "Yesterday, I was informed _briefly_ of what our mission is in the north, to the Great Wall. But I would like to be kept abreast of _all_ the details, Master. I humbly request that you inform me of what _exactly_ it is we are to be faced with."

Shifu nodded to his pupil, hardly needing to contemplate on what she proposed. He trusted Tigress completely, having more than once proven herself a capable leader. "You are clever to think so. Well, I _shall_ tell you all that I know. I recently received a letter from the predominant Lord of the State of Ji, Mo Wai – a timid, but friendly hog if I ever saw one. He informed me of a threat that has existed in his land for some time - a problem that he has tried to deal with through various forces, but regretfully, all have failed to keep order. He hoped that by me sending you and the others, the threat would surely be put to a stop."

"I see," commented Tigress respectfully.

"The way he described it, it was hoards of bandits looting villages for supplies and actually _kidnapping_ citizens with almost every raid."

Tigress' brows scrunched in racing thought before posing, "Did he tell what he knew of what _happened_ to the hostages, whether they were used to get anything in return? A ransom, perhaps?"

Shifu sighed, and the tiger detected a hint of agitation in his tone. She was about to inquire its meaning, but he continued before she could, "No. Nearly all of them, over two-dozens, have not returned. He does not know what has become of them. He can only assume, because some _have_ returned." His large ears flattened to his head, as did his bushy, white eyebrows to his nose. Tigress was watching him closely with concerned, flashing eyes. "All found dead. In alleyways and in streets mostly. Gory depictions, Mo Wai illustrated for me: gashes in the throat, stomachs torn open…" he shuddered briefly. "Grizzly, dishonorable deaths."

Tigress' orange orbs flashed dangerously, shocked by this discovery. Murders? And by what had been described, it seemed all in cold blood. She hung her head low for a moment, to allow her master and herself to grieve over this terrible news. For fallen brothers and sisters. Dishonorable deaths, indeed.

But this was vital information, and was immediately satisfied with her original idea to confront her master on this subject. "Well, this certainly changes everything. It's obvious these bandits are skilled with weaponry: swords and knives, no doubt, in order to commit such – "

"No," interrupted Shifu, eyeing his student seriously. Tigress immediately held her tongue and remained silently curious by his earnestness. "These invaders could _perhaps_ be very skilled with such weapons, but from how Mo Wai described the murders to me, the victims were not killed with blades."

Tigress squinted her eyes, confused. "What do you mean, Master Shifu?"

He let out another regrettable sigh. "The gashes in the victim's bodies where not clean, like the kinds blades _usually_ leave. Not even serrated through which a knife could make. Instead, they were torn. Ripped. Clawed…"

Silence passed before the female tiger's jaw fell open as she made the connection. Her pupils narrowed even further, and she couldn't help but also flatten her ears out of this horrifying revelation. "Master…" she breathed, unable to finish her thought.

He looked at her again with a steely coldness to his already icy-blue eyes. "Yes, Master Tigress. They were made by teeth."

She let in and out a quick inhale and exhale, disturbed expression still holding strong.

"Whoever these _'bandits'_ are, they are predators - c_annibals!_" he practically spat the word. "These innocent victims: mothers, fathers…_children_. They had been partially eaten."

More shocked silence passed.

"And the honest reason why I didn't tell you sooner about this was because I knew Mo Wai would have told you. He insisted upon it in his letter, to make sure that you were at least _in_ the State of Ji when he told you. That way, it would have been harder for you to decline his plead."

Tigress instantly shot an angry look back up at the red panda, a hard frown on her face. "I assure you, Master, that the others and I would _never_ deny such a blatant cry and _need_ of help! The citizens of the Valley of Peace know that, as does Gongmen City, and as should _all_ of China!"

For the first time in a couple of long, heart-felt minutes, Master Shifu grinned. He also nodded to his prized student. "And it is because of _that_, Tigress, that I decided to break Mo Wai's wishes, and inform you of_ all_ the details."

* * *

><p><strong>Yeah, I know, not TOO much going on here - mainly a fight scene and a lot of dialogue. I intended this to be longer, but I thought, if I HAD to cut it somewhere, it might as well be here. But BIG revelation here in this chapter. Yes, there is some SERIOUS cannibalism going on up in Northern China! Gory description, I know, but it makes for a better story. Hope you enjoyed! Leave a review if you're willing! :D<strong>

***Mo Wai means "timid/concerned" in Mandarin**


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